Star Fox: G-Zero Chronicles
by Phantomfoxx
Summary: Following Ending 9 of Starfox Command, Fox turned to G-Zero racing after Krystal joined Starwolf and took down the Anglars. 5 years later... The main focus of Phantomfoxx. Introducing a new line of persona's, as supposed to the stereotype like Kursed or any other kind of Fox reincarnations as a bounty hunter. Thanks to Wing Ace for the inspiration.
1. 5 years after

**Starfox G-Zero Chronicles  
**

**Prologue: 5 years after  
**

*Starfox Command Post Battle Dialog inside the Great Fox II*

'Wow, I can't believe he was just hanging out here this whole time. How boring!' comments Falco, slightly exhausted from blowing Pigma to pieces.

'ROB? Any information on Wolf?' asks Fox.

'I am receiving a message from General Peppy.' he reports. 'It was broadcast to all inhabited worlds in the Lylat system. Shall I play it?'

'Please.'

The holographic transmission opens up and General Peppy appears on screen, wearing the red uniform. His mustache is completely grown and his ears turned floppy.

*Transmission*

_This is General Peppy Hare of Corneria!_ _As of this moment, I am announcing out total and complete victory! __A brave fighter squadron managed to penetrate the Venom Sea! __These heroes wiped out all of the enemy ships and bases! _

_ That's...that's incredible! _

_ To help mark the occasion of this most glorious of days... __I have asked the heroic squadron leader to say a few words! _

_Good people of the Lylat system... My name is Wolf O'Donnell. __I am the leader of the Star Wolf squadron! _

_ HIM?! Oh, you've gotta be frickin' KIDDING me! _

_We know that many of you have a somewhat negative opinion of us. __This saddens us greatly, for we love all the people of this great system. __But we placed our lives in peril with no thought of reward or glory. __Perhaps now, you might find it in your hearts to embrace us as equals. __For even the coldest of hearts sometimes yearns for friendship. _

_ Yeah! And we're not done with the whole peace and love thing, either! __We'll keep serving the community! Y'know... aiding weaklings and stuff? _

_ And now, Panther would like to introduce a new team member!__We could not have saved you all without her help! __A former Star Fox member, and the most beautiful pilot outside of me... __Krystal! _

_ ...Crud. _

_ Some time ago I was asked to leave team Star Fox. __I thought that pain would never end. But now I have a new team! And a new life... __And I couldn't be happier with my fantastic new partners! __From now on, I fight with them for the glory of Lylat! __With our help, this system will know endless peace and harmony!_

*Transmission*

'What a total snow job! They don't care about any of that stuff! Except for Krystal but... *sees Fox* Well...They get glory and we get the bum's rush! Pah! I'm gonna puke!' he yells angered.

'...Say, Falco? There's a... a nice little shop on the planet of Papetoon. It's quiet. Relaxed. Away from everything and everyone.

'Papetoon, eh? Yeah, that's pretty much the edge of everything right there.'

'You...you wanna go with me?' asks Fox, holding back his tears.

'...Sure, buddy. Let's go.'

'ROB, set course for Papetoon. And don't spare the horses.

'Affirmative.'

'One other thing: Don't spare the Great Fox either. I want it completely gone... all of it. No Star Fox for Fox McCloud anymore. Without her... what am I? A helpless hunk of flesh and bones without a purpose in life.'

Falco starts to think about that. 'Hmmm... you buddy? I think you're quite wrong about that Fox... ever heard of G-Zero?'

A long silence takes over, with Fox sitting in his chair, head bowed down towards his own legs.

'You know what...'

'What Fox?' asks Falco.

'Who's Fox?' says a different toned voice coming from Fox's chair..

With the engine exhaust flaming, they enter the green planet of Papetoon's atmosphere, turning their backs on their present life and looking ahead at the future. Years pass on... and it seems someone in particular has some trouble keeping her emotions under control...

She holds her head in paws, thinking and staring at the door in front of her. It has been a long time since she sat in her room like this. Maybe 4 years ago or so. She looks behind her and places her paws against the glass. The mothership flies by the purple planet of Eledard with its thriving industries. It's pretty chilly in her room. She can feel that and see it too. Her breath is visible including her fingerprints nearly freezing off the window she placed them against. It seems the conditioning is getting out of control. Without a remote and a central regulation, it's pretty hard when the central regulation doesn't cooperate or even hates you.

*Leon still didn't got the controls?* she thinks. She looks down at her pink, white-striped suit and her white heels. Her room feels right and wrong at the same time for no reason. The same furniture, sky blue but bland wall painting and of course her bed hasn't changed. It needed a wash but that was of little trouble. A soft knock on the door in front of her interrupts the silence of her thinking.

'Come in.' she says.

It's Panther, for once not holding his signature red rose. He's dressed like he just got out of his own customized ship, the Black Rose Wolfen. He calmly approaches her.

'What's the matter my love?' he asks as he sits down next to her on the bed. 'What is plaguing my Krystal's mind? Tell it to Panther.'

'It...it is Fox...' she answers awkward.

'What does that red furry idiot have to do with your suffering?'

*PANTHER!* yells a deep and evil-ish voice that is fairly close to her room. The voice belongs to Wolf, who is surprised that Krystal's room is open.

'Oh hey Krystal. Don't exactly notice you at first. What's wrong?'

'She feels sorry for Fox somehow.' replies Panther.

Wolf looks quasi-astonished but then realizes: 'Oh yeah... it's your fifth anniversary of the break up with that idiot.' claims Wolf as he wiggly points his finger back and forth.

'When I told Lylat that I was officially a Starwolf member, I fell out against Fox. How he ruined my life... the pain I felt... Maybe... I was too... uh harsh?'

'Harsh how?' asks Panther concerned.

'Like... I feel as if I ruined a hero's long time work. He saved Lylat over and over...'

Panther holds her paw. 'He is no hero. For failing you, he's nothing more than an ordinary villain, like we used to be. Until we saw the light... and I saw you.' he flirts.

'Ruining his life sounds like a nice side-effect though.' comments Wolf compassionless. 'Panther, when you're done, meet me on the bridge.'

The door closes as Wolf walks off.

'Just try to forget him my dear.' states Panther as he walks out of the room. The door closes once again.

Her head falls back into her paws as the air conditioning gets even worse.

*Just forget him. I wish it was that easy...*

She takes a deep breath and exhales in a deep sigh.

*He's right. Panther, such a gentlemen. When we first met, many might think he's just an ordinary ladies men. But it seems that he can fall in love for real. He's taking us all to the G-Zero Grand Prix on Papetoon. I just hope Leon gets the controls before we miss it.*

On the bridge, Leon finally managed to gain control over the Great Fox II, already renamed into the Great Wolf, for the sake of it.

'Heh, you can't win against the Great Leon stupid robot!' nags Leon against ROB, who simply lays face down on some controls, reaction-less. Hardwired to the Great Wolf ever since it was build and known as the Great Fox II, he was temporary disabled before Starwolf found it unoccupied, floating around in space. Searching for a stable place, they simply took it. 'Not that Fox and Falco were there anymore' No one ever wondered where they went any way...

A message opens on Leon's screen displaying:

*_Asshole_*

'How did you call me!?'

'That thing still doesn't work?' says Wolf who is followed by Panther and Krystal as he enters the bridge.

'That robot just called me an asshole!' complains Leon.

ROB's side-detectors detect Krystal entering the bridge and beeps up the intercom.

*Intercom*

_I don't work with criminals and a traitor!_

*Intercom*

Small red lights coming from his the corner of his eyes gaze at Krystal when he speaks of 'traitor', which Krystal takes very personally.

'That robot needs to shut its processor!' commands Wolf sitting in Fox's big, comfy chair, feeling in complete charge of the ship and its crew. However, the chair is stained by Fox's butt print, which apparently isn't cleaned out yet. Even after many cleaning done by Krystal. For what else is a girl good enough... right? 'Powalski!' he continues. 'Get us to Papetoon. If we wanna be on time for Panther's paid trip and event, we better hurry up.'

'Certainly.'

The big ship slowly sets course for Papetoon. The bridge remains completely silent, with Krystal feeling left out by everyone, even Panther somehow. As the planet comes closer, ROB receives an usual news report. A sudden shock moves through his body like an alarm on vibrate. He quickly turns off the alarm; he wants Krystal to see for herself what she has done...


	2. That distant Dyam

The Great Wolf is on its way to Papetoon. Everyone is excited for the G-Zero Grand Prix, except for Krystal. She isn't quite comfortable. The situation kinda dimmed down for her.

For those who didn't know already, I have Facebook. Use Phantom's real name to find me. For those already knowing about this, I said I wasn't gonna upload anything. But I did anyway. Enjoy!

**Chapter 1: That distant Dyam**

*Transmission*

_This Wolf O'Donell of the Starwolf team. Hereby I ask permission to enter Papetoon airspace. Over._

_Copy that Starwolf. Airspace is clear._

_Can you confirm the location of the spaceport?_

_Of course. Keep heading 105 and you'll be good._

_Thanks Ground Control. Starwolf out._

*Transmission*

Wolf leans back in his chair, like he just finished something exhausting. He looks over to Leon, still struggling with the problems ROB is causing. Suddenly, the ship tilts heavily to its right and leaves course.

'Son of a biiiiiiiitch OW!' shouts Wolf as he clashes with chair and all against the right side window. Krystal and Panther managed to hold on to their control panels and Leon got a hold on the motionless ROB.

'LEON!' screams Wolf. 'Get this thing under control!'

'I can't! That robot has taken over the controls!'

'I thought you took care of it!'

'I thought so too.' says Leon when the ship tilts to normal again.

'Pfieuw... that was quite a thrill.' remarks Krystal.

'Are you okay Krystal?' asks Panther concerned.

'I'm fine. Thank you.'

'Get this thing back to 105 Leon. Or ROB isn't the only thing having malfunctions.' threatens Wolf as he places his chair back where it stood before. Leon kicks ROB away, whose head grinds over the controls towards Wolf. He stops in the middle of the two, remaining as motionless as ever. Slowly, the Great Wolf turns back to its original course as Wolf gets another transmission.

*Transmission*

_Starwolf? Do you read?_

_Go ahead._

_We registered that you were off course for at least a minute. Is everything alright?_

_Technical difficulties. *glares at ROB* We're back on course._

_Roger that._

*Transmission*

Enormous claws reach out from the ground and open as the Great Wolf descends into the trash compactor-like hole. The landing gear unfolds as the claws bend towards the hull of the Great Wolf. Touchdown is made as the claws close around the hull. The Great Wolf shakes violently for just a moment, indicating that the claws have a tight hold on the mothership. The radio sends out a ping.

'Alright. We have arrived.' states Panther positive.

'Finally. *looks at this watch* And too late! We missed the final race!' breaks Wolf. 'Your fault Leon!' states Wolf as they walk away.

'My fault? It was clearly that stupid robot!' claims Leon.

Wolf waves it off while Krystal signals that he just has to come. Wolf steps aside by the exit as he lets Leon push the open button. *Let's see if he screw this up...* thinks Wolf as Leon presses the button. The door slowly opens as the stairs descends towards on the black elevator transport platform.

'Remind me again why we have to come with the transport elevator?' asks Krystal to Panther.

'Wolf thought it was cheaper.' explains Panther blunt.

'I thought it's your money.' answers Krystal.

'Do I sense hostility Krystal?'

'Displaying bitchy behavior Panther?' bites Krystal. 'I thought you were a little bit better then Leon. He's like a mindless slave to Wolf.'

'He's just a little envious about him.'

'A little!? Have you heard how he bragged about him during that skirmish a few years back?'

'Lylat Cruise Program... That you remember that.' says Panther.

'*sigh while placing her hand on her heart* I don't forget things very often.'

'Still having probs with Foxy?' says Panther as he puts his right paw on Krystal's left shoulder.

'It's Fox, Panther. And yes... it's still a problem. Puh... *pushes Panther's paw away* You're such a jerk sometimes.' states Krystal angry as she walks out of the door first. She pushes Leon away but is stopped by Wolf's left arm blocking her way. With the same stale look as she gave Panther, she stares at Wolf, not intimidated by it at all.

'Manners... Wolf?'

'Geh... manners. Not for me.' states Wolf as he steps down the stairs first, followed by Krystal, Panther and Leon. Once they all stand on the elevator platform, the stairs ascends and the door closes. A heavy crack is heard, as the elevator shakes once, before descending downwards. The light of Papetoon slowly becomes nothing more then a small hole above them. The elevator stops and a hover scooter-like is floating before them. They step on and it takes them through a blue enlightened tunnel. It reminds Krystal of the Arwing Simulation, which imitates the launch from the original Starfox game on the SNES. She played that a lot and trained in the Simulation with Fox. All this, doesn't help her to well. The long tunnel goes up like the start of a roller-coaster. Bright light is seen at the end. As the four cover their eyes, they see that they ended up right in the middle of Papetoon City. They step off the scooter and begin to observe the environment.

'I thought with a name like Papetoon City, it would be bigger.' says Krystal.

'Those on Papetoon don't like being packed up within buildings and roads. It's like Hawaii on Corneria, they do as they please.' explains Panther.

'Did we end up in a park or something?' wonders Wolf as he sees nothing more than a plat surface with a small paved scenic routes around green fields of grass.

'That must be the Colosseum!' says Leon, pointing out into the distance. As Wolf focuses towards that direction, he can see it too.

'Nicely found Powalski. *signals the rest* Come on. Let's see what there is to save.'

The four walk towards the Colosseum. As they do, they notice that it's getting more crowded with people by the second.

'Well, it seems that there is still stuff going on.' comments Panther. 'I wonder if...'

'You wonder if what?' says Wolf without looking at Panther.

'*sees what he was looking for* I knew it.' says Panther as he points towards a large tent with very large trailers connected together with a makeshift hallway that can easily be unfolded for the center. Almost 80% of all the people are standing around that red tent.

'What's all the commotion about?' asks Wolf to Panther.

'The new guys. They are currently sky rocketing to the top. Dyam and Falcon if I'm right.'

'Dyam? What kind of name is that?' wonders Krystal.

'According to his own statements, it's a notch to his lost love. 'Almost as shiny as she was' he said. He's very distant when it's about girls. Other than his partner, Falcon. His quite the show off.'

'*giggle* Like you?'

'GAH! Far bigger than that.'

'I can barely imagine that...' comments Leon cynical.

'Go back to worshiping Wolf you bug!' bites Panther.

Meanwhile, in one of the trailers...

With a calm attitude, he turns on the lights encircling the mirror. They are shining bright, enlightening the whole room. It hauls his shadow on the wall behind him. The room is nothing special. Pretty cramped actually, but what's there to expect from a trailer? The walls are painted in a faint yellow color while the bed and the curtains above left of it are colored in a dark shade of blue. He sits down on the chair before the mirror, exhaling deeply. He looks at himself in the mirror with a sad look. His eyes turn to the right of the table, seeing a bottle of absinthe. Next to it, a small shot glass. He focuses again on his own reflection, particularly on the chuck in middle of his right ear. With his index finger, he starts to feel around it.

'Argh!' he shouts restrained. 'Fuck. It still hurts? Even after all those years? *shakes his head* Uuurgh... I must be sober again.' he complains as he grabs the bottle and with that knocking off the shot glass. As it breaks on the floor, he starts gulping down the bottle. He only drinks about 1/10 of it before placing it back on the table. On the left, there is a large wooden closet with two doors. He opens the right one and turns on the radio standing there. He enfolds the antenna and turns the frequency knob until he hears something.

*Photograph of Nickelback plays*

*Perfect song choice.* he thinks as he closes the door, muffling the music for the most part. He looks down the left side of the table, finding a drawer. He opens it with his left paw and starts to grabble about in it. He picks out a small photograph as his right paw grabs the absinthe again and places it against his mouth. He takes a large swig before slamming it on the table as he sees the content on the photo. He almost chocks. Padding himself on the back, he coughs it out. Several clots of absinthe mixed with saliva splatter on the mirror.

'Gross.' he complains as he uses the picture to clean the mirror, leaving a large stain behind. Thinking it's close enough, he shrugs it off as he focuses on the photo.

*Damn... 5 years ago already.* he thinks as he reads the date of the picture, written with a red marker. He scans the entire photo, seeing himself making bunny ears behind some girl's head. Her head is scratched with red, but her blue fur color shows her identity. *Krys... I miss y...* Suddenly, his vision starts to blur as he throws the picture away. He suddenly doesn't have to the stomach for it anymore. Taking one last swig from his beloved bottle, he turns off the mirror lights. He opens the door to be greeted by Falcon, scaring the living hell out of him.

'SON OF A...! Falcon! Grrr...' he grumbles restrained.

'Hahaha... how's it going bud?' he says as he pads him on the shoulder. The blue feathered avian, that always stood by his side. Even when things couldn't look any darker. He's dressed in a green racing suit with a white zipper running down the middle, the exact opposite of what he himself is wearing. (red and black)

'Mwoah... okay I guess.' he claims.

'*sniff* Bweurk! *squeezes his nose* Have you been getting energy again?' asks Falcon disgusted.

'Maybe. I need it, so who cares?'

'*hands him a can of mints* The audience. And maybe me.' says Falcon as he walks down the hallway towards the red tent. He watches him go as he opens the can. He grabs a handful and puts them in his mouth before following in Falcon's footsteps. The cheering of the crowd becomes louder the closer he gets. He can hear the manager already cheering up the crowd. As he comes around the corner, he can see Falcon already waiting for him.

'Hey buddy. Hurry up. Rye is about to announce us.' says Falcon, already halfway on the stairs towards the stage.

In the meantime, Starwolf has been penetrated to the middle of the horde as they have a clear view at the stage. They see some guy dressed up in a tuxedo cheering up the crowd. A pole holding the tent up is close to Krystal as she looks up. She can see that there is a television attached to it, which draws quite the attention. Curious, she starts to focus more on the report on the TV rather then on the stage.

*News report*

Good afternoon Papetoon. My name is Paul Newman. One subject in this extra news bulletin. Starfox is officially declared dead. Not that any of the members are really dead, that would be utterly horrible, but it is indeed so. *image of Peppy Hare appears* General Peppy Hare of the Cornerian Army, oldest member of Starfox to date, announced it after 5 years of trying to keep it alive. He quoted:

'After Krystal left and joined with Starwolf, I heard that Fox was utterly devastated. Living like an already dead men. After some good news, I never received any word from him any longer. Nor from Falco, he apparently was his only true friend throughout all this. I gave up on Starfox's mothership, the Great Fox II around 2 years ago and now it's time to leave Starfox behind. Wherever Fox and Falco are, I hope they left Starfox far behind them.'

Well, that's all for now. Join us again in our evening program around 20:00, in which we take deep look into the latest G-Zero Grand Prix race from the rising stars Dyam and Falcon.

*News report*

This was the exact message which ROB held for himself. *What have I done!?* Krystal is broken down. She feels dizzy, out of control. Regret, she can feel it everywhere. She starts to feel that everyone is glaring at her for doing what she has done. The dizziness worsens as she starts to lose control of her balance. Desperately, he looks over to the stage.

*Ladies and Gentlemen, here they are. Your champions and future G-Zero Master Class racers... DYAM AND FALCON!* is heard by Krystal. Suddenly, clarity comes upon her when she sees Dyam come on stage, waving at the crowd. She stands on two feet again and drops everything. Her thoughts, her stubbornness and her dignity. She has the urge, the primal urge. Like she was something supernatural, she starts borrowing her way through the mass like drill through hard soil.

It doesn't matter for the remaining 99%, which is going insane over the appearances of Dyam and Falcon. The crowd barriers and guards standing around the stage can barely hold their own as hundreds, if not thousands try to climb on stage. Rye grabs the microphone again and silences the crowd by unleashing a shrieking sound by holding it close to one of the speakers.

'Everyone! Please, take it easy. These two that stand before you, are nothing more then ordinary people just you and me. That only difference... *dramatic pause* They are the GREATEST RACERS SINCE EVER!' roars Rye through the microphone as the crowd goes wild again. Threating to do the shrieking again, the crowd silences again.

'These two champions will be racing this very night to claim their deserved spots for the G-Zero Master Class on Aerosol! So don't forget to buy your tickets and other souvenirs associated with the D&F brand to show your support for them. I'll see you all... tonight.' ends Rye as he turns to Dyam and Falcon.

'Alright guys. Nice background image. Just like we planned. Now, the end routine. Wave and get off the stage without any trouble. *points at Falcon* Understood? *points at Dyam* Understood? I hope so. I'll be in my trailer when your looking for me.' says Rye as he walks off stage. He unties the tuxedo and is happy to breathe again. A stewards standing near the steps is used a wardrobe as Rye simply throws the tuxedo over the steward as he walks down the hallway. As Dyam and Falcon starts their end routine, Krystal starts screaming as hard as she can. However, mostly drowned by the volume of the rest, it isn't well received.

*OX!* is vaguely heard by Dyam, who stops in his tracks. Falcon turns towards him.

'Hey... what's going on?' he whispers.

'No idea. Someone called me an ox... or something?'

'An ox? *laugh* What the hell? Where are you horns then?'

'Yeah... I guess I should stop drinking.'

'*bends over to reach for the microphone* HEY! Who called my buddy here an Ox eh?' says Falcon through the microphone. The crowd is silent, however Krystal can't keep in her last scream.

'FOX!' she screams.

Dyam's eyes spring open. His stomach starts to turn as he gets a metaphorical push to the stomach, which launches him back quite somewhat. He starts to heave, for everyone to hear it. Rye is alerted by the mic-ed hurling sound as he rushes back on stage, bringing two other stewards with him.

'I told him to stay out of trouble!' says Rye to himself. However, he and the stewards are too late. Dyam pukes on stage right before his eyes and thousands of others. As Rye covers his eyes and mouth, the stewards rush towards the exhausted fox and carry him away as the crowd disperses. Seeing Fox slipping through her fingers like liquid, (the kind she doesn't want on her paws at all) she is dragged away by Panther. Completely frozen, it's almost possible to pick her up as a whole.

That's the introduction to Dyam. A alcoholic with an appetite for absinthe. What caused him to suddenly change his behavior from missing Krystal to throwing the picture away and don't giving a single shit? Will 'Fox' ever be pronounced without Dyam throwing up? Next chapter...


	3. Fox is gone

**Chapter 2: Fox is gone**

The stadium lights of the Colosseum housing the G-Zero 8-track shine bright over the race track as all racers enter in the last lap. A standard indoors circuit. This is only at nighttime. The outside tracks are usually on the Papetoon tundra or at Ragged Ridge Area. The inside tracks are illumanited by blue plasma, acting as crash barriers. More like 'Crash and Burn', since anyone who's is dumb enough to step into it, will be turned to ashes. The crowd goes wild as Falcon and Dyam cross the finish line as first and second, followed by the rest a few seconds later. The flag for second last lap is hung after the last racer crosses the finish line. The Starwolf team have taken their seats already and are just as thrilled. There are sitting as close to the track as Wolf was prepared to pay, so somewhere in the middle. Krystal looks around the stadium. She sees a large pole in the middle of the track with big screens showing everything. From advertisements, to random info about the racers currently on track. At the top, the lap count is given.

*79 out of 80, displayed as 79-80* is what she reads in orange letters.

Every chair is colored blue and black, probably to promote the 'Rising stars' since their G-Diffuser color is the same. Their G-Zero Racers have the form on an Arwing, however they look sleeker and rotund than an Arwing. Dyam has customized it with a painted diamond on right below the cockpit and has the blue G-Diffusers. Falcon made his G-Diffusers even sleeker and attached same feather-claws, similar to his Sky Claw, to end. Except for the black color, nothing more stands out.

*Transmission*

_Hey Dyam. Ready to lose?_

_You mean that I become second? Sure._

_You know the drill.  
_

_*sigh* As if Rye didn't hammer on that enough already._

_Quit your complaining and focus on the road yeah? At a thousand km/h, you don't have time to blink._

_Nice one. Started taking lessons by Panther after that Lylat Cruise?_

_*Transmission break-in*_

_Will you guys shut the fuck up and let me through if you are not planning on winning?_

_How the hell are y... *notices the guy from the rear mirror* You look familiar... Sargasso Space Zone!_

_What!?_

_Remember? It's that guy that broke in to our comms at the Sargasso Space Zone. He said that he was gonna skin us!  
_

_Really? Well... in that case..._

*Transmission*

Both ships' G-Diffusers begin to extract as they glow white-hot in the face of the primate. Thinking that he's going to be burned by the sun **(notch to 'skinned')**, he's completely frozen before Falcon and Dyam blast off into the last corner before the finish line, where the Starwolf team is sitting. As the anchored primate regains control of his racer too late, he crashes into the closed-off side of the road, completely annihilating him and his racer. Krystal has managed to clear her mind a bit as she focuses more on the race. Thinking that Dyam is Fox. Pfff... sure.

'Enjoying the race Krystal?' asks Panther.

She nods. 'I do Panther. It clears my mind.'

'Ah yes. The adrenaline you get when those racers pass by is immense. I'm glad I'm here with you my dear.'

'*giggle* Thanks Panther. I'm sorry for calling you a jerk back there.' she apologizes.

'I don't mind. You weren't completely there. I forgive you for that.'

*You forgive me for expressing myself? Are you kidding me? There he goes again!* she thinks as her smile turns into an angry look. 'Excuse me?'

'Hm?' notices Panther.

'I said "Excuse me!". You forgive me for expressing myself? Like I'm not allowed to?'

'Of course you are. It's just that you weren't there. That's all Krystal.' ends Panther.

'You really are a jerk Panther! Seriously!' she states as he rises from her chair and walks up the stairs towards the exit.

'Krys. Wait!' shouts Panther after her, but she ignores it as the racers pass by for the last time. With a deep sigh, Panther sits back down on his chair.

'You fucked it up again?' comments Wolf cynical.

'Shut it Wolf. I... I just don't know what it is with her... One moment she is completely with me and the next moment: *snaps his fingers* she is on planet Fox. I have no idea what is going on.' claims Panther. 'Goddammit. *places his paws against his face* I'm such a fool.'

*Maybe that's because you have no compassion for my situation Panther.* thinks Krystal, standing at the entry to the tribune. Using her mind reading ability when the mental barriers are down, she heard everything Panther thought. Not a single apology crossed his mind. Only... 'Why me?' She closes the door to the tribune and walks through the empty ring. Advertisements shown on TV show the D&F brand related products while food stands open up their windows. She can hear the cheering of the audience and the enthusiastic commentator over her own thought. They were empty any way. She walks down the stairs with a stale expression on her face. When she steps outside, she can hear the commentator scream out:

*And we have a winner: F *stretched out* aaaaaaaLCON LOMBARDI! *audience goes wild* And as second... his loyal companion and good friend: DYAM! The third... uuhh... do we actually care!?*

Hearing the name Dyam again, reminds her of her sudden freezing at the red tent the afternoon before. Her mind clears up as she looks back at the stadium. She regrets everything she said to Panther. About him being a jerk. Of course she was unstable, emotionally speaking, but she shouldn't have overreacted. Maybe she shouldn't have overreacted on someone else too...

*I'm a stubborn dumb bitch, aren't I?* she starts questioning herself. *And all this... *sigh* just because I saw Fox within Dyam. That's it! Enough with the self-pity and doubts! I love Panther! Not Fox! *stomps her head with her fist* Not Fox... not Fox... not Fox... right?*

As if she never thought of that last word, she exhales it, letting it out. 'Whew... now that is gone.' she states. 'But still... I feel sorry for what I've put him up with. Like Peppy said, he was utterly devastated. If seeing him vomit on stage because of his real name alone is any indication... I'm gonna visit him and ask him, hopefully not beg him, for forgiveness. Even after all he put me through, it is true that I had everything. Fox was alone with Falco and a robot. A broken heart before we forget. I had a backup, to say blunt. That's a plan! But where could he be?' she wonders.

She turns her head towards the Colosseum, from who fireworks rise up into the skies and explode in bright colors. She can feel the horde of people rumble out of the Colosseum. It's only drowned by the commentator saying:

*That was all for today folks! As the racers who failed disperse into shame, Dyam and Falcon return to their garages. They are the winners of today! Losers... hit the deck! Buzz off.' ends the commentator as he takes of his suit and hangs it over his chair. He throws his headset in a far corner before putting up some sunglasses. He opens the door behind him and enters a whole different world: the Penthouse!

'His garage! Of course!' remembers Krystal. 'That is right underneath the structure where the commentator was preaching from. That is also the thinest part of the Colosseum, meaning that there must be a ground entrance to both.' reasons Krystal as he starts to run to her right, following the curve of the Colosseum. She ends up near the main entrance. It's enormous and all of it made of glass. A red carpet leads towards it and continues inside. She opens the door and notices that there are no guards standing. The furniture is made up out of wood and yellow painted walls. A leftover radio shaped like a walkie-talkie is transmitting something on the service counter. She picks it up and listens to it.

*Radio*

_All available personnel! Repeat, all available personnel! We need some extra help containing the primates in box 7Y. Same as last, but this time they have started to throw things. _

*Radio*

'Hmmm... perfect. This means free entrance to the garage and Dyam.' she says to herself as he lays the radio back. She spots a sign saying *When no one is around, enter at own risk!*, a few metal-detectors and baggage controls in between them. Although the detectors are operational, the baggage controls aren't. A sentry gun hanging from the ceiling is activated and authorized to fire when the commando is given. Since no one is here to give that, it's programmed to get rid of anyone standing in the way.

*So that's where that sign is for.* thinks Krystal as she looks up to the sentry gun. She is right below it. Destroying it will give her free passage, but will alert a lot more then just the security. She looks at the machine and sees that its joints aren't meant to bend any further 15 degrees downwards. Maybe just a gamble about that number, but loose wires and part of the packaging is simply gone. Also, it operates on laser and sensor detection. The sensor are glowing red hot underneath the floor. Stepping on it, would trigger the laser. Upon the laser touching a target, the Gatling gun starts to spin around before unleashing it's bullets. All within 4 seconds, in the right situation.

*Slow reactions is something that I'm gonna rub into that machines face!* thinks Krystal as she runs towards the baggage control. She dives right through the hole, stepping on the sensors in the process. Before the laser is even made, Krystal is already at the other end, where the sentry gun has no visual over. As if it was daily business, she walks on. A blue sign hanging from the ceiling informs her that the 'Garage Chambers' are to her left. The third door is the one she is searching for. The diamond on the knob of the door says enough. Carefully, she opens it to hear that the garage door on the other side is closing with an immense roar. Dyam is holding down a button while checking out the time on his wristpad. Krystal uses the cover of that roar to close the door behind her and hide behind a piece of cover. Since it's mostly hauled in shadows, she has no idea what it is. She starts to peek between a gap in her cover.

'*Gulp* *Gulp* AAAAH!' exhales Dyam forcefully as he crushes the middle of the can of coke before tossing it towards Krystal's cover. In a badass fashion, it stands upright as it hits the top. He snatches a cloth from his right and starts approaching his Arwing. Out of Krystal's sight, right behind his Arwing, he squats down before a wooden chest. With a song in his head, he opens the chest, grabs out his beloved bottle of absinthe and a new shot glass, before walking around the Arwing and humming the song. He stands now with his back towards Krystal, still peeking. Placing the bottle and the glass on the Arwing's right wing, he takes off the top half of his racing suit and throws it behind him. It lands on top of Krystal's cover and blocks the gap.

'Corner... *cough* *haggle* Ahum... ahum... *haggle* Hum... Hum... ahum. Warming up the voice a little... *haggle* *spit* That's better. Cornerian nights. Du-dum-du-dum. Cornerain nights.' sings Dyam, but very out of rhythm and even badly.

'Cornerian nights. Du-dum-du-dum. Cornerian nights.' continues Dyam as he wipes his Arwing clean with the ragged and dirty cloth, which is actually a shirt. The white Starfox logo in the middle is barely visible. 'Ah, my Arwing. The only good memory I took with me from Starfox. Even you have changed my friend.' he states as he cleans a wingtip.

'I can see my own stunning reflection in it. I know I'm awesome...' he remarks as he strokes through his hair.

*I can't stand to hear him like this. He sings badly...* thinks Krystal with her back to her piece of cover, squatted. She places her left paw flat on another piece for extra grip to take a sidestep. This results in the shaking of that piece.

Suddenly, a sound is heard behind him coming from a row of big red tool-cases filled all sorts of equipment as Krystal tried to peek around. *Clunk* Krystal quickly stops her moving and is scared to death, trying to control her breathing.

*Dyam POV* 'Who is there!?' The drawers itself aren't shaking or rattling at all. He focuses on the ground and sees that an empty soda can fell of one of the cases and is now rolling over the floor, making the noise. He shrugs it off and continues cleaning and his singing.

'Du-du-die-dum-te-dum-te-dum... Yegh! Oil all over my hands.' he complains as he walks towards the bathroom, when trying to clean with the shirt didn't work.

'Soap, soap, soap.' he still continues while washing his hands. He looks up in the mirror.

'Hhm... maybe a different look will do the trick. That crew cut, *strokes through it* gotta go. But what kind of style fist with a beautiful man with a chunked ear?' he states cocky.

'So, this is the new you eh?' he hears behind him, in a very familiar British toned voice. He looks behind him, but doesn't see anyone. He has had enough as he dries off his hands, walking towards the door complaining.

'Okay Falcon, stop joking around... *notices her* hey, who are you?' he says as he opens the door seeing Krystal's back in the shadows, stuck in mid-run.

'Hey, one more time: Who are you? I'll call security.' he threatens as he points to a phone on the wall. Krystal stops her running and stands still with her back still at Dyam.

'Already forgot how to fight?' she remarks.

'Wha... who are you!?'

She turns around and reveals herself by stepping into the light. 'Don't you remember me anymore Fox?' she softly asks.

Again, it is like Dyam is punched in the stomach as he is launched back a little. He breaths in and out. *Don't go apeshit all over again Dyam. You are in control, not that bitch. Whoever she is!* he thinks.

'Geh, please... don't ever call me that again. EVER! Period!' states Dyam.

'Why? Can't handle the truth?'

'What truth? Agh, doesn't matter. Just who are you!?'

'I'm Krystal! Like you don't remember that...' he shouts annoyed.

Dyam places two fingers on his goatee beard, thinking...

'The only Krystal I knew, is spelled with a 'K'. And you... haha... are certainly not her.'

'Oh no? Who am I then Oh Great Dyam?' she shouts angered.

'I don't know. Some groupie who smoked too much weed? Hell...' he waves off as he turns around towards his racer.

'I know you could sink deep, but I never thought this deep, Fox.' she says as tears slowly exit her eyes. This time, Dyam is able to take the blow somewhat better than before.

'Well... *breath* so called Crystal, the Krystal with a 'K' might have helped with that...'

'Wh..what do you mean?' asks Krystal while drying her tears. She shouldn't have done that, cause Dyam is on the verge of eruption as turns around...

'*goes completely Angerfist* Maybe because she borrowed his entire life into the ground!' he screams. 'Even dug a hole *pretending to dig a hole*, to make him fall extra deep! A bottomless pit filled with spikes, lava or even Hell itself would be a fucking understatement!' he ends.

'B..but...' stumbles Krystal.

'*suddenly very calm* He made her leave, because of his increasing and eventually overpowering concern for her safety. A sad reaction? Okay! An apology from him to her? What the fuck not, right? *angry again* But nooooo... everything was skipped and thrown in the garbage disposal when she delivered the most childish deathblow in history: JOIN the other team, FUCK his rival in love and PLEASE his rival in teams. Followed by BARFING against HIM, his TEAM and their ENTIRE LIFEWORK! Like Starwolf was that heroic... *sigh* Thanks to her, Starfox and Fox McCloud are dead... FUCKING DEAD you hear me!? *calms himself* Only I remain... and my name is Dyam. Now get lost before I really start calling security.' he ends.

Tears drip onto the dusty concrete floor of the garage. Her knees are shaky and her tail hangs between her legs.

'I...I j-just wanted t-to say that *snivel* I'm sorry...' she stutters.

'For what?' he notices. 'For being here without any sort of permission whatsoever? Apology accepted.'

'No, I mean f-for what I did to you...'

'You mean what 'K' Krystal did to him? Maybe she should be here in person, instead of sending some junkie claiming to be her, in a pink outfit!' he insults. 'K Krystal hates pink!' he ends as he turns to Krystal's eyes.

'Maybe... it's already too late for an apology.' he states compassionless but soft. He sighs deep and returns back to cleaning his racer.

Tears now simply go wherever they please as the heartbroken Krystal just let's them go.

'Know this Dyam: Somewhere inside her, she still loves him...' she says as he simultaneously places her left paw on her heart, bonking out of control.

'He's dead... now leave!' he commands easily as climbs on his Arwing to clean the cockpit.

Heavily crying, she runs out the door she came in, almost running down Falcon coming to see Dyam for a nice talk about the race tomorrow.

'Wow!' yells Falco surprised as he bashed aside by Krystal running away. Falcon looks after her until she disappears around the corner. Outside, the sun has stopped shining and the night has taken over.

'Who was that?' he asks. Dyam jumps off and turns to Falcon, wiping his hands again with the ragged shirt before he throws it away.

He jokingly says: 'Hell, some groupie who had a little to much off *imitates smoking a joint*'

'She seemed pretty decent for a crack whore... what was her name?'

'She claimed to be Krystal.' he says as he grabs a shot-glass on a yet to be cleaned part of his Arwing's wing. It's filled with a absinthe, just because. In one swig, all of it is gone.

'AAARGH! Good stuff.' he states he places the glass back.

'Our Krystal?' replies Falcon a little late.

'*sudden burn in his throat of the absinthe* Ahum... *cough* Yeah, 'our'.'

'The one, who ruined your life with Starfox while you were only trying to protect her?' he verifies.

'Exactemundo mister Falconium.' states Dyam. 'That one indeed!'

'Well, she was crying pretty good. What happened? And don't say 'it' was too big for her. I've heard that excuse countless times.'

Dyam hops on his racer. 'I went complete berserk on her, simply telling her in more numerous and insulting words to go fuck herself, if she was Krystal.'

'Wow, that's hard. Even for your standards...' remarks Falcon. Dyam shrugs again.

'Do you mind? That bitch called me the F-word, three times today already! Three hard punches to the stomach! And then I'm supposed to stay nice!?'

Falcon hops on as well. 'Life is hard bud.' he comforts Dyam.

'*Thanks Falcon. Pep on TV was right. You were my only true friend.* Well, you can certainly say that...' comments Dyam slightly sad.

'Eh, forget about her. And about Krystal too. Harsh stuff, but it only gets harsher the longer you bring it with you. Let it go! She's gone and never coming back. Celebrate it! The further away, the better! Tomorrow, last race, big party and then we're off to Aerosol. Lylat and that whore will be gone, out of your system forever. Recus System, here we come!'

He hops of Dyam's racer. 'Goodnight Dyam. Think about, will ya?' he asks as he walks to the elevator.

'*sigh* You're right. She can suck Panther dick. Goodnight Falcon.'

'That's the spirit! Hold on to that buddy. I'll see you tomorrow.' ends Falcon as the elevator doors close and bring to the penthouse. Dyam remains seated for a few moments, staring through the garage. He grabs the absinthe bottle and pours the glass full again. He places the bottle back on the ground and again gulps everything down in a single swig. The burning feeling returns and blurs his vision. He gets dizzy and nauseous. He starts to heave and vomits all over his hands, trying to cover his mouth.

'Fucking great...' he complains. *Well, at least that's out my system.*

He hops off and walks back to the bathroom. He opens the lid with a clean finger and washes his hands in innocence...


	4. Autonoymous tip

With sky rocketing numbers, the G-Zero Chronicles is an absolute hit it seems! Therefore: CHAPTER 3 for you G-Zero hungry guys out there. Enjoy!

We know how the 'conversation' between Dyam and Krystal ended. But only on Dyam's side of things. How did this all turn out for Krystal?

**Chapter 3: Autononymous tip**

The conversation that ended already, has just been started as Krystal bumps Falcon away in her grief. Heavily crying, she makes her way out of the stadium. As she runs towards the lobby she came through, she is standing exactly underneath the hanging blue sign. She has no idea what is going on behind her as she slowly collapses. Her eyes are half closed as she hits the ground, completely exhausted from everything. Doubt, regret... everything is against her. As she tries to get back on her feet again, she can hear whispering in a slightly panicked tone. Using her right knee as point of support, she rises from the ground. Although pretty dizzy, out of balance and not completely there, she can see SWAT members standing in front of her, all aiming their guns at her. In their eyes, she looks like a drunk or as Dyam said 'A junkie who had a little too much' as her look heavily suggests it.

'What are we gonna do?' she hears.

'No clue. Is she one of them?'

'Certainly looks like she has gone through hell.'

'That's enough you Doomsday Preppers!' states one as he lowers his rifle. 'This obviously a victim of those murderous freaks!' he states as he runs towards her aid when she falls with her back on the ground. He grabs the back of her head and lifts it off the cold hard floor before placing his left index finger on her neck. His finger feels warm.

'She's still with us.' he states towards the rest as he exhales happily. 'Pfieuw... she didn't die this day. Hopefully not another as well. *turns to her* Are you okay? What happened?'

'Uuuurgh...' she moans.

'That must have been horrible out there.' claims one of the SWAT members. 'If she escaped from that angry mob, then I expect her to behave and look like that. Look at that pink suit: everything is filthy and dusty. She must be glad she came out unscratched.

'At least someone is with me. Thanks bro. *turns to Krystal again* Hey, what's your name sweetheart?' he states friendly.

'K..*cough* Krystal sir.' she answers cracked.

'Beautiful name.' he compliments. Krystal looks at this face, to see her own reflection in the black tainted protection glass of the riot helmet he's wearing. SWAT is spelled out in white letters above it. He flips it open and reveals his face. 'I'm Ryan. *takes the helmet off and holds it under his left armpit* Ryan Steller. The face of a yellow and black cheetah with violet colored eyes is shown. A small, brown colored scar runs down his right cheek towards the tip of his chin.

'*reaches his paw out* Let me help you up.' he offers, which Krystal accepts in all the commotion. Still too weak to stand on her own feet, she hangs on Ryan's right shoulder. Ryan wraps his right arm around Krystal's middle for some extra grip.

'She isn't she dependent...' jokes another. Ryan glares at him and simply states. 'Hey Joker. Because you are the funny guy here, do your work and go get some help for this woman.' commands Ryan.

'Funny? Funny how? Like a clown?' he bites back.

'I saw that film too you cretin! Now fuck off and get some help. you annoying prick *pulls his gun and aims for the guys head, dropping the helmet on the ground in the process* or I will show you what I think of clowns!' threatens Ryan.

'Jesus!' scares the guy. 'Take it easy man. *still sees the aimed at him* Okay okay... Jeez. Take it easy... tight-ass prick.' he complains before running of outside.

'Thanks for standing up for me...' thanks Krystal who feels drunk beyond believe.

'Take it easy, spare your powers. Help is here al... *looks shocked to his right over Krystal's head and stagnates in his words* ready...? Shit!' he shouts before walking towards th far right corner close to the glass entrance to the race track, in which he puts Krystal against. As she slowly drools towards the ground, Ryan orders with a gesture that everyone has to come over here. When they see what Krystal can't see, they all grab their shields from their backs. A front row of shields is made in front as exhaustion and screaming coming from everywhere deafens Krystal temporarily. She can see Ryan shouts against everyone before grabbing his assault SMG and aiming towards the direction. She reads coming from his lips: 'FIRE!' before the exhaustion starts to effect her eyes too. As she vaguely hears the shots from the guns, the shield barrier is broken open when the entire group of SWAT members either retreat or are overblown by a huge crowd of primate hooligans. She loses consciousness.

The splashing of rain on the windows sounds more like a brick going through one as Krystal wakes up with a start. She feels dirty, weak and has a huge headache. Her face made an impression on the window, but disappears quickly. It's still dark outside. She grabs the side of the wall she was set in and uses it as a point of support to get herself on her feet again. When she stands upright again, she can see the bodies of the SWAT members, being trampled by the angry mob. In all the madness she has gone through, it is hard to be compassionate about it. She stumbles outside and is drenched within a second. Thunder rages somewhere far away, but very audible. Her mascara runs down her face, as it's impossible to distinguish her tears with the rain pouring down. She starts to cry out loud as she covers her face and starts to run away from the Colosseum, away from everything she ruined. When she nears the green grass fields again, Ryan comes around the other corner. He takes off his helmet as his right paw holsters his gun.

'Whew... that was extraordinary. Luckily those guys aren't dead. *grabs a bullet from the ground* Rubber! Ineffective... *hooligans completely covered in bruises, handcuffed, are taken away behind him* but when you pump enough of these bastards into them, they'll fall down like a tree versus chainsaw. Now *drops the bullet* let's see if Kry... *notices she's is gone* Oh... well. Good for her. She found the strength to continue I guess. *looks at the glass door and sees it pouring* She went out there!? In this weather? That's fucking dangerous! The fields are flat as all hell! She could become a target for *thunder rumbles* that...' he states as he starts to run after her. He grabs the leftover radio from the counter, changes the channel and puts his helmet back on. As he closes the mask, he transmits the following.

*Transmission*

_This is Op3 requesting support at the green fields. Potential weather threat on innocent identified as Krystal. No innocent victims are to fall within this occasion. Although out of the station, she was in the crowd. All available units respond! Over!_

_Op3, we copy. This is Eye High. We got your Krystal at 500 meters from the Colosseum running in the green. Repeat, running in the green. Advise you stay where you are Op3. Thunder is a bitch!_

_So was my ex but I survived her as well, didn't I? You said 500? I better start running! Keep an eye out on her Eye High!_

_Roger that. Any idea why I need to do this? She your new girl?_

_Shut up and focus okay!?_

_Fine. Eye High out._

*Transmission*

As the thunder reflects in the glass of the snipers scope, it is still aiming at Krystal.

*She looks like she is running away from someone. *turns the rifle to the entrance of the stadium and zooms in* And there is Ryan. Maybe she is running away from him heh heh...*

A sudden lightening strike on the grass field before the building he's camping on shocks him enough to stop his lame jokes and focus on Krystal again.

*I hope that Krystal reaches her destination in time. Otherwise... *imitates zapping sound* vixen a la flambé.*

Suddenly, he view is blocked by a higher building as Krystal continues to run away from the Colosseum.

'FUCK!'

*Transmission*

_Op3, I lost her._

_What!? What do you mean!?_

_A fucking building is in my way. It's not my fault!_

_ETA?_

_30 minutes, if you're lucky._

_*deep sigh* Nevermind. Thanks for the help Eye High. I own you one._

_I'll remember that. Eye High out!_

*Transmission*

As Ryan attaches the radio to the helmet with a clamp, she runs through the rain. He can see Krystal as a small pink dot in the distance. He looks to his left, to see Eye High waving around with his arms. When noticed, he points at the building. Ryan gestures that it doesn't matter anymore. Thunder strikes again, this time a lot closer to Eye High. It impacts on an antenna close to Eye High. Shocked, he leaves Ryan field of vision. Realizing that the thunder could strike here too, he looks around him. A few trees and some sand hills are the only thing high, including him and Krystal. In the meantime, the pink dot has become a small blob as Ryan runs faster then Krystal. But she disappears in an upcoming cloud of fog.

'Son of a...' insults Ryan as he loses Krystal out of his vision. When he is out of the fog, the vision still isn't very optimal. He can see the Great Wolf standing there and Krystal running towards it. He hides behind a tree as he aims his SMG at her.

*I got a clear shot at however is in there. Please don't let it be Krystal that is the bad guy.*

Ryan's conclusions are both very wrong. Instead, the stairs lower down as the door opens, welcoming Krystal back. Panther stands in the doorway; he was waiting for her already. Ryan retreats his SMG and lowers himself, sliding with his back down on the ground with a relieved sigh.

*Pfieuw... another close one. She has another... disappointed? Sure. Unthinkable? Hell no. *takes one last look, seeing Krystal running up the stairs towards Panther's open arms* Aaahw... how cute. A well... love... *stares at the sky* will I ever truly know it?' he questions himself as he lights a cigarette before hearing the door of the Great Wolf closing.

However, it's all but sunshine and happiness in the Great Wolf. What Ryan missed, was that Krystal pushed Panther away before the door closed. Breaking through Leon and Wolf coming through, she opens the door to the bridge. She closes it behind her with a loud slam. She locks it and activates the security measures, covering the door in a metal plate. No sound comes in.

She senses that she is not alone. She looks to her right, seeing ROB, operational for once. He is trying to regain control over the Great Wolf so he can keep stinging Starwolf anytime, anywhere. His detectors spot Krystal's presence as his gold-yellow face turns to her like the demon from The Exorcist. His red eyes gaze at her before he falls motionless on the control panel once more.

*Intercom*

_*Processing*_

_Traitor!_

_*Processing*_

_Known fibers detected within Great Fox II. Main source: Falco Lombardi. Secondary source: *enthusiastic* Fox McCloud!_

*Intercom*

'Fox is dead ROB.' says Krystal as she sits down on her chair, still sobbing.

'Incorrect. Life signatures are detected. DNA is similar to Fox.' replies ROB himself, instead with the intercom. He remains face down.

'He's not really dead. Something wrong with your sarcasm?' bites Krystal annoyed. '*sigh* He simply changed... a lot.' she claims as she remembers the conversation well and feels another crying fit coming up. ROB becomes a little more sympathetic.

'Oh... you and Fox had a...' he implies.

'Dyam. And yes... we had.'

'What was the conclusion?'

'Maybe it's too late for an apology.' she sobs before she starts to cry again. ROB lifts his head and moves over to Krystal sitting face down, crying within her paws. He carefully swings his arm around her. Although cold and metallic, she feels comforted. She never expected ROB, of all people, to be the one to break the ice.

'Awake his inner McCloud.' suggests ROB.

'What?'

'Awake his inner McCloud. You said he changed?'

'Yes but...'

'Fox never really changes. Since I was inherited by him, I knew everything. From the moment of losing his father till the very point that we said goodbye. I saw how his fathers death ruined his life. However, the CFA as suggested by Peppy made his life a whole lot better. Friends helped a lot with that. Starfox was his everything, until you came. Since you are the one responsible for taking down his life with Starfox, you directly can't help him.'

'Andross couldn't help him either...' adds Krystal slightly sarcastic.

'Indeed. Therefore, to get him back, someone else has to convince him that he is not Dyam, but Fox McCloud. A elite mercenary pilot, not a G-Zero racer.'

This makes Krystal think. After a few minutes, she has it all figured out. 'That's a plan! And I already have an idea how I'm gonna get out of here...' she grins towards the front window.

Outside of the bridge, Wolf, Leon and Panther are still waiting for her to open the door. Wolf is impatiently pacing back and forth in the quite narrow hallway between the bridge and way to the other rooms.

'When is that girl gonna stop crying!?' complains Leon.

'As soon as she has things straightened again.' answers Panther. 'Shut your face bug!'

'Panther! Leon is right. Her bullshit has to stop, right NOW!' states Wolf as he stands before the door. 'OPEN UP KRYSTAL!' he screams as he starts bashing on the door. It is interrupted by Panther, grabbing Wolf's right arm and stopping him right away.

'I said: Let her be!' states Panther brave.

Wolf looks far from impressed as he retreat his left arm and lets it hang next to his body. 'And I said: FUCK YOU!' he shouts in Panther's face before punching it with his left fist. Panther falls on the ground as he covers his face from any shame. Leon has no idea which side to choose as Wolf continues to bash against the door. ROB looks through the camera feed from inside. For the comical effect, he lets Wolf bash a few more times before falling down on the panel again. The metal plate retreats as the door opens. Furious, Wolf steps in while the Leon helps Panther up.

'Are you okay Panther?' asks Leon concerned.

'Argh... *feels his forehead and teeth* Ugh... got everything. I'm good.' he states as he stands up. He wipes off some dust before being shocked when Wolf screams in anger. Peeking around the corner, he can see Wolf, overcooked, looking at the large crack in the front window of the Great Wolf. Panther notices a letter on Krystal's chair.

'Who... did... this?' asks Wolf restrained as he spots Panther and Leon enter from the corner of his eyes.

'Maybe this letter will explain more...' suggests Panther.

'Read it.' commands Wolf dry.

'Of course.'

Panther picks up the letter from the chair, clears his voice and starts to read. 'It's from Krystal!' he says happy.

'She did THIS!?' shouts Wolf overcooked again as he glares at the two.

'Panther... *swallow* just read it out loud...'

*Letter*

_Dear everyone,_

_I know that my recent behavior wasn't appropriate. I was in fierce doubt over everything and nothing. Luckily, thanks to an anonymous tip, I can accomplish what I couldn't do before: Ask forgiveness to the real Fox McCloud, not some cocky guy calling himself Dyam. Don't try to follow me! I'll not be able to stay in touch for a long time. You of all people, should trust me in that Panther. This all doesn't mean that I'am leaving Starwolf. I promise that I'll come back as soon as Fox has forgiven me... back to you Panther._

_Greetings,Krystal  
_

_PS I took my Wolfen with me. And yes, I broke the front window to escape and make my plan work._

*Letter*

ROB gave her an idea on how to get Fox back. Awaking his inner McCloud. She knows how. But like ROB said, she herself can't do anything about that. Dyam would recognize her. What is her plan and why did she take her Wolfen with her?


	5. Sahara

Krystal has a plan to awake the inner 'McCloud' spirit within Fox, hiding behind the persona called Dyam. Since she herself can never accomplish that but the only one who knows how, what is going to be her plan?

**Chapter 4: Sahara**

The upcoming sun behind the mountains far away slowly takes over the darkness of the night. Sun-rays slowly find their way through small gaps between the tops and colors the large clouds reddish. A slight squeak of tires braking disrupt the otherwise silent atmosphere around the countryside outside of Papetoon City. The landscape isn't very different from the Colosseum area but somewhat more bumpy and descending like standing on top of a hill. Less steep and more green then the one behind her. Her white heels step onto the asphalt of the small parking lot of the garage before she closes the cab door. She takes a look at the small garage, looking like a car occasion, but a lot smaller. Several motorcycles and hover-scooters are on display, out and inside. This gives her a feeling of small-scaliness and coziness for some reason. It's very inviting for small time hobbyists on their cars/motorcycles/(hover)scooters etcetera.

*Am I infected with the racing fever already?* she thinks as she hears the cab driver tab on his window. *Oh yeah. I still gotta pay him*

She walks over to the window and puts down the black suitcase she was holding in her right paw. A pretty young grey hound-dog opens the window. 'From the Colesseum Area to Garfunkel's 24/7 Car Services... *checks meter* that will be €36,50 Papetoon Kina please.' he states.

She reaches for her back-pocket, being annoyed by her large hikers backpack in the process, and lifts out a small brown leather wallet. She opens it and sees two bills of 20 Cornerian Francs. 'Do you accept Francs?' she asks friendly.'

'Cornerian? Sure. That will be... *pushes a button on the meter* oh! Exactly 40. Convenient eh?'

She hands over the two bills as the driver greets her and drives off. She can see him close the window before riding off further into the countryside. She picks up the suitcase and turns to garage. The wind blows her hair to the right as she can hear the spinning sign on a pole squeak.

*GaF 24/7* stands in blue letters on a yellow circled background. She peeks through the glass building as she sees nothing but darkness.

*For a 24/7 car service, it's pretty crowded...* she thinks sarcastically before opening the door. Thanks to the lingering silence, she is startled as the opening triggers a small bell, alerting anyone. She shakes it off as she approaches the counter, where no one is sitting behind. Multiple brochure about the G-Zero Grand Prix and several other attractions the area of Papetoon City has to over are standing upright in a small glass container. But her attention is hauled to a gold painted bell.

*Ring for service* she reads on a note close by. She looks around and sees no one, so what the hell?

*Ching!* chimes through the room, before echoing back a few times.

*A SECOND!* is screamed from behind a door directly behind the counter. The light above the counter is turned on while the rest of the lights seem to refuse to be turned on. She hears a sudden ping coming from above her. She sees a security camera monitor her and the rest of the entry area. She smiles at it, but it turns away quickly. Suddenly, she hears from behind the door:

*GREAT! NOW IT'S THERE AS WELL!*

She has no idea where that was necessary for. *Is that guy talking about me?* she thinks with a feeling that it just can't be true. *Nah... probably not. It's not like the guy knows me... right? Argh... I'm thinking things again.* She starts to get a headache from herself. Like the situation isn't bad enough already.

*SON OF A... *restrained* Come on you stupid... huuuuurrrr... *sigh* Don't you dare to get stuck on me! Piece of shi... *something of stone breaks* FINALLY! I'll be there in a sec. Having some trouble back here with an dead car battery!* is shouted from behind the door.

She doesn't answer. She promised to herself to stay in her role. *I'm someone else. Krystal is not here. She is on a... uh... vacation. Just picture that.* she encourages herself. At long last the door opens to be presenting the yellow-black furred back of someone carrying something very heavy. On his left shoulder hangs his white shirt.

'ATTENTION!' he calls out as he turns around and simultaneously slams an enormous car battery on the counter, nearly cracking it. She takes a step back from the light, hauling everything but her nose and mouth in the shadows when she looks upon his face, into the violet colored eyes.

*It..it's him! Ryan! From the SWAT team!? How long was I out!?* she thinks panicked while her facial expression masks it completely.

'So, *sigh* Whew... heavy shit. *stretches his back* Uurrgh... *crack* Wow! I think something got loose right there.' states Ryan as he loosen up his neck. 'And you are?'

'My name is not important.' she states cold.

'Wow.' says Ryan impressed. 'That's a *awkward laugh* pretty good imitation of my ex. I'm getting goosebumps as we speak. But okay. No name. So, Miss Anonymous... first of all; Welcome to Garfunkel's 24/7 Car Services etcetera, etcetera.' he introduces bored. 'You get the deal, right? Now, where can I help you with?'

A tow truck pulls up on the parking lot dragging around a reinforced four wheel trailer where the Wolfen MkI stand upon. Strapped up with strong tightened bandages so it doesn't fall off. She simply points at that without moving anything other then her elbow and arm.

'That's my business.' she says. 'I want you, to turn that, into a G-Zero Racer.'

Ryan takes a good look at it from behind the counter and starts to roar. 'WHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! That heavy old piece of garbage!? Are you kidding me? Whahahahahaa *suddenly very serious* No way in hell.' he ends abrupt.

'Why not?'

'Why not?' ridicules Ryan. 'Why not? Uhm... *trying to bring it as soft as possible* First of all: that is a Wolfen Mk1. Previously used by the infamous Starfwolf team at their time being Andross's dogs. Bad for reputation and stuff.' explains Ryan. 'Second: It's old and outdated beyond believe. And number three: why are you so shadowy about everything?'

She starts to smile because of the hazy joke and has a hard time restraining it. Ryan points on that.

'Aha... I knew it! You are not who you say you are, are you? Ah well... *waves it off* Doesn't matter. It's okay. But... *points at the Wolfen* I'm not gonna fix that for you.'

'Not even for this?' she suggests as she places the black suitcase on the table. Ryan is quite interested all of the sudden.

'A suitcase hum? *sees the code* What is it?'

'Either 1992 or 1029, I'm not sure.' she says while she knows very well. 'It's up to you.'

'Another game? What is this? Candid camera or something? Am I getting fucked with at the moment?'

'No. Promise me one thing.'

'And that is?' asks Ryan as he comes closer to her face.

'When you see what's inside... promise me you'll do it.' she whispers in Ryan's ear. Ryan sits down on the chair and starts to jiggle around with a pencil.

'So... I'm supposed to promise you my services in return for whatever might be in that suitcase?' he verifies. She nods. 'And when I look into it, I'll transform that piece of hopeless scarp metal into a G-Zero Racer, is that correct?' She nods again. After jiggling around with the pencil for a few moments, he flips it away and moves the chair and himself closer to the suitcase.

'Fine. I'll do it. What's the code?'

'1929, a mixture of the both.' she answers.

After every number he flips he looks upon the vixen's face, to see if she shows any sign of laughing or anything else. Pretty hard when she is hauled in darkness of 99%. But something about her seems to be familiar about her... something about the way she talks, the accent, the distance in conversations. Either by her state now or about a dizzy and overburdened state a similar vixen earlier that night has shown. Thinking about all this, he managed to spell out 1929 exactly. He opens the suitcase and opens his eyes wider, to witness infinity. Like seeing heaven itself. He quickly closes the suitcase and starts to blink very fast, as if something in his eye.

'And? How about it?' she says as she opens the suitcase to reveal the inside to be filled with the entire reserve of the Starfox budget, counting up to 1 million Cornerian Francs. (Around 1.15 million US dollars) The red Starfox logo painted on the furnished inside covered up with duct-tape and the plastic wraps around the bills showing the logo as well, are in some trashcan downtown.

'Alright... I'll do it. But first... two questions. First one: Where did you get the money?' asks Ryan as he wipes in his eyes.

'Not important for you. Unless you don't want it...' she gestures.

'Of course I want it.' states Ryan as he cleans out his contact-lens with a small tube filled with clean water. He puts it back in his eye. 'Who doesn't want to be a millionaire, with money from some woman in the shadows, right? It's completely save. Now, second... what's with the giant hikers backpack?'

'Personal stuff. Not your business.' she states harsh.

'Alright! Take it easy... *sigh* a promise is a promise. I'll turn that dodgy old can of rust into a G-Zero Racer. If... you tell me your name.'

'I said that my name wasn't important.'

'You did, but your cold attitude you are showing at the moment, cannot mask your kindness and innocence you shown to the *points towards it* camera. You are one sneaky little girl... Krystal!'

'Wha.. ho..how?'

'I recognize a phony. Learned that in the army. Long time ago, but still. You still recognize me?'

'How could I forget my savior?'

'Burning sarcasm... I like that in someone. But yeah, it's me. Ryan Steller. Mechanic at Garfunkel's 24/7 Car Services and a volunteer within the SWAT. How? Ever heard of: Papetoon is like the Hawaii of Corneria? Same shit. SWAT members, cab drivers etcetera... mostly volunteers. We get bored easily. That's why we hold the G-Zero Grand Prix here.' explains Ryan.

'Are you just gonna talk about your life or you gonna transform my Wolfen?' she asks inpatient.

'Easy there Miss Rush. What's the hurry?'

'I'm gonna challenge the rising stars.' she states proud. Again, Ryan starts to roar.

'WHAHAHAHA! You!? Challenge Dyam and Falcon!? You're never gonna win! Not even with your Wolfen tuned up.' claims Ryan.

'How do you know for sure?'

'They come here often. I'm not saying there are my friends or something. More like 'Guys I know'. They are here because of the newest parts to either lighten or enhance their racers in anyway. By the way, you own me one.'

'Pfff... sure.' waves Krystal off.

'Damn right you do. I saved you back at the Colosseum. Without me, you would trampled by those primates.'

Although it isn't true, she can't use anyone her mission to return the inner McCloud. She has to do it on her own. It's no one else's business. 'Yeah okay. I own you one.' admits Krystal grudgingly.

'Are you stressed or something? If it has that much impact on you, then let me assure you that I'm not planning on abusing you or take advantage of you. Instead, *opens the door next to him to step away from the counter* I'm just gonna tell you to do this...'

'What is 'this' you are suggesting?'

'Win.'

'You want me to win?'

'Indeed. I've seen you to many times, for my feeling, being dependent like my asshole of a colleague called you. I want to see the real you. I think you have a lot more potential then your innocent look hides.' claims Ryan.

Krystal blushes a little. 'Wow... eh... thank you I guess...' she stumbles.

'Come on. Since you want a G-Zero Racer, I think you want to give it a personal customization, right?'

'Indeed.' answers Krystal. 'I need to be identifiable.'

'You figured out the whole purpose of the G-Zero Grand Prix: Be Noticed! Winning isn't the only thing, you need charisma. You need character and a catchy name. But that's your business, not mine. *signals the tow-truck driver to drive the Wolfen in around the back* So, I'm taking you the place where the magic happens.' says Ryan jokingly as he walks with Krystal down the hall. The sun outside barely rose any higher as Ryan suddenly stops and turns to a white door.

'The magic place.' introduces Ryan as he opens the door. He turns on the lights and a 'magic place' looks almost exactly like Dyam's garage, but smaller and fully enlightened, instead of a large part hauled in shadows. With a mighty roar, the grey door on the left side rolls up as the Wolfen is driven in. Thanks to the noise, Ryan signals that Krystal should follow him to a white-board. As the truck detaches the Wolfen, the door rolls back done and with a firm bump it closes. As silence slowly takes over, Ryan starts to talk.

'Alright. This is the plan. Your Wolfen needs to become a G-Zero Racer. For that, it needs a total makeover. First of all, it's way to big. I need to cut it in half. Not a huge issue, since the designers already started on that for me. The problem is the strength of the structure. I have no idea if that thing is gonna fall apart the moment I touch it. Suggesting that Step 1 goes according to plan, Step 2 is gonna be time-consuming. You need a completely new engine and G-Diffusers. If this all works, then Step 3: its design. This determines the engine, wing positions and G-Diffuser technique. So, if you would give me all the details... then everything will be fine.' ends Ryan as he drew out everything on the white-board while he was explaining it. As they discuss the details of the Racers design, it starts to rain outside.

'Great design.' compliments Ryan enthusiastic 'Doesn't really fit you but who am I to judge? That's a done deal Krystal. *shakes her hand* It's a done deal.'

'That's magnificent news to hear. When is it going to be finished?'

'Why? You in a hurry?'

'How about... uh... before tonight?'

Ryan thinks about it as he starts collecting his stuff. He puts on a wielding mask with a headband. Before he closes it like he did with his riot helmet, he answers: 'Hmmm... I don't know. But for someone like you... *wink* I'll try.' he answers as he kneels down before the Wolfen, grabbing a blowtorch. Krystal turns her attention to the bathroom door to the right.

'Mind if I use it?'

'Wut? *turns his face to Krystal* The bathroom? Sure, no problem. *turns back* I hope you got something to do with you in that giant backpack of yours. *lights the torch up* This is gonna take some time.' laughs Ryan as he puts the mask on. Krystal enters the bathroom the moment Ryan starts to work his 'magic'. She looks around but isn't particularly interested in anything but a conveniently placed chair close to some toilet-cabins. She sits down on it and places the huge backpack right in front of her. She zips it open and grabs all sorts of odd stuff out of it. A electronic polisher with small holes within the polisher, a sack of desert sand (guaranteed Titania desert sand), a small can of white body paint, a paint brush, orange colored (huge likeness to sand) hair spray, a pair of chocolate brown eye-lenses and her old purple and black suit from Starfox.

*I got this from Fox. Why would I throw it away? *looks at her own clothing* Dyam was right. I hate pink! I have no idea why I'm wearing this! It's like... who designed me like this!? Nevermind. My mind is taking another detour. Need to remain focused. Krystal isn't here. *grabs the sack of sand* Only Sahara...* she thinks as she opens the bag. She grabs with other paw the polisher and opens its tank. She pours all the sand in it and plugs it into a wall socket. She undresses herself, with exception of her underwear and stuff. She throws the pink suit and white boots somewhere in a corner as he places the polisher on her right arm.

'The arm, where it all starts with. Till I turn it on, I'm Krystal. When I'm done... I'm SAHARA!' she says to herself as she flips the switch.

As she slowly moves the polisher over her arms, the sand is stuck between her fur and is evenly spread out. She spares her face. When she is done with her body, she turns to the suit. Also this one, is getting a sand/paint-job. About an hour later, the polisher run out of sand but the sand is very well visible, giving some glistering to her appearance. With the white paint, she deforms or extends her tattoos. Just to make sure that if someone ever makes it that far, they won't recognize her because of that. When done with that, she puts in the lenses. Her ocean blue eyes are turned to chocolate. At last but not least, she grabs the orange hair spray and sprays part of her hair sand-colored, letting some parts remain blueish purple like normal. The blue parts on her suit are changed to the color of sand as well. When she puts on her old suit and boots again, some feeling of nostalgia overflows her. Like the clothing held memories. She sees parts and moments with the Starfox team for the moment she got the suit, during the Aparoid Invasion and before she changed her look. Why she changed her look? That is a vision broken down due to the fact that the relationship was getting more rocky by the second. She wasn't expecting this and cuts it off before it works to much on her emotions.

The attention shifts to someone else, having some trouble on its own. Bored and concerned, he is holding the chin of his face in his paw. He looks over to his right, where Leon is reading a comic. His stupid purple colored suit is something he really hates. It attributes nothing to Leon and looks more like a suit for a slave, rather then something for a pilot like Leon. Fitting, since Leon is seen as Wolf's little pet. Talking about Wolf...

As Panther hears the door open, he is surprised by a sudden note-block thrown at him. Wolf grins, standing in the door. Panther looks quasi-interested at it before looking at Wolf with a face saying: 'What is this?'

'Since you have nothing better to do then sobbing around until Krystal comes back, why don't you make yourself useful and see if that chick stole anything more then the Wolfen and the money out of my wallet for the reparation for the front window.' commands Wolf as he sits down.

'I trust Krystal.'

'Sure you do.' waves Wolf off. 'Just go and check it out. Start with Vault 1 and work your way down from there. Heh heh...' laughs Wolf in himself as Panther disappears behind the closed door. He takes a left turn, towards the Pilot Rooms and takes the stairs down to the basement floor. He opens the door to Vault 1 with a keypad and enters it. The door opens rusty and Panther has to help to open it. Once he steps into it and turns on the light, he sees why the door is that rusty.

'Wow.' shocks Panther. 'This is some rubble right here.' claims Panther. All around him, nothing then rubble. In a small room, not larger the 2. Metal shelves have been fallen on the ground, forming a domino effect only stopped by the other side of the wall. Between those, a small path is made of clean floor leading to a stash of all sorts of junk. The whole situation looks like someone tried to set the room on fire, completely forgetting that there is a sprinkler installation above it. But seeing the situation, it must have burned pretty well.

'Grr.. If I want to see if everything is here, I have to take a dive in that pile. God knows what's inside.' grumbles Panther as he starts digging. When stripping away one layer, he comes to a layer of ripped up photographs. Hand shredded, not mechanical. Panther grabs a random piece and looks at it.

'Hey. That is Krystal's boot from her previous outfit. How does that end up in here?' asks Panther to himself. He shrugs it off and continues digging. Other layer is visible.

'YEGH!' calls Panther out in disgust as he holds up a drenched old tissue. 'A tear-infested tissue! GROSS!' says Panther as he throws it away in a corner. He looks at his paw.

'Disinfecting soap as soon as possible.' he says to himself when suddenly something hits him. 'Wait. Tear-infested tissues, ripped up photo's with one displaying Krystal's old boot... *realization* I'm digging through the grief of Fox McCloud about Krystal leaving. *looks upon the heap* Look upon what I have created! This is immense. *continues digging* This is like a time-capsule. The further I dig, the further into past I go. After some intense digging, Panther's paw comes in an opens space. Finding it odd, he retreats his paw and looks through the hole he made. He sees a very dusty book. He grabs it and frees it from the heap, now looking like an igloo.

'Wow. A book. Is that Fox earliest memory to Krystal's change of mind? Let's take a peek, shall we?'

He blows of the thick layer of dust but blows right up in the air. A fairly large part comes in his face, irritating his nostrils and eyes.

'*Couch* *Cough* *Choke* *Cough* *waves it all away in front of his face* Yegh... that's a lot of dust for a book around 5 years old. I should have expected that.' blames Panther on himself. Humiliation is complete when he sees it's the backside of the book. Grumbling, he turns it around to find another layer. He blows it off but this time turns his head away from the upcoming dust cloud. When he waved it away, he sees the title.

'Starfox Log Book' reads Panther out loud. 'A log book? Like a diary? Haha... Fox is such a girl. *opens it and starts to flip through the pages* Searching... searching... gotcha! 19th of October 14 ALW... the date we transmitted the message. *reads it* That's gotta hurt.' adds Panther to the pain.

But as he progresses to read, he gets more and more compassion for Fox's situation. Detailed descriptions of how Krystal's memory haunts Fox to the point where Dyam is actually taking over. The diary ends with the message:

_ I would take her place inside the fire. Shame she wouldn't do that for me._

'This... this all so pure. So beautiful... If Krystal gets a hang of this... she would read whatever the cost and she will return to Fox anyhow! I have to stop it! *grabs a lighter* I'm gonna finish in what Dyam failed to do. I'm making sure that this cursed diary takes her place in the fire. *ignites the lighter* By firing this!' states Panther as he burns up the corner of the book.

With inspiration from TroyGroomes, recommending my Starfox: Ghost, I got the diary part in there. Hope you enjoyed another chapter of G-Zero Chronicles. Something different eh? No Kursed, instead someone called Sahara. As Sahara, she can certainly give the awakening a shot. Will she succeed? Is Panther coming after her? Next chapter...


	6. Challenge accepted!

Krystal, now Sahara, is completely ready to hit the G-Zero Grand Prix in her racer. Ryan is turning her Wolfen into a racer as we speak. Continue reading...  


**Chapter 5: Challenge accepted!**

The one bright lamp on the far side of the white paved wall of the bathroom seems to be enough to enlighten the whole room. Now that the transformation is nearly complete, she sees the world with different eyes. With a different look, comes a different attitude. She looks at her appearance in the mirror and is actually surprised that it worked out so well. She likes the new 'bad girl' attitude she gave herself. After some unnecessary actions and gestures to herself, she realizes that there is still one thing, that could blow her cover: her accent. Her British accent isn't that present, but better to take precautions. She starts talking to herself in the mirror, slowly changing her accent to somewhat more American. It's pretty hard on some parts, but over time she can pronounce everything a lot better. She takes a small break and sits down her chair with a heavy sigh.

*Pffff... quite the struggle.*

She can hear the cursing of Ryan as something falls on his toe.

'*giggle* Bad Luck Ryan eh?' she jokes in herself. She is getting pretty tired. The whole situation with Fox turning into Dyam, Dyam cursing against Krystal and Panther being jackass number 1, doesn't help with the fact that she hasn't slept for around two days. However, she finds the energy to continue and stands in front of the mirror ahead.

The morning sun breaches through the small windows close to the bathroom's ceiling as it is morning at last. On her knees and with her head placed sideways on her crossed arms, she forms her own pillow on the bathroom sink. A fierce ray of light pierces through her eyelid. With a harsh, naggy moan like waking a teenager out of bed way to early, she lifts her head from her 'pillow'. With one eye closed and the other covered by her paw above it, she looks towards the window.

'Morning at last. Today I can challenge Dyam and Falcon!' she says to herself. She notices the dead silence. Not only in the bathroom, but also outside. No sound of the blowtorch, any other sort of equipment and not even Ryan is saying a word. She shrugs it off; it's not very important for her persona she is playing right now. She opens the lid of the faucet and throws a fresh splash of cold water in her face.

'*SPLASH* Whew... I feel like reborn.* She walks over to the automatic hand dryer. While the machine dries her hands, she can see the trashcan to her right. Her pink costume and white boots are stuffed in there. Krystal is not here anymore. The machine stops and Sahara casts off anything still on her hands before opening the bathroom door. There, she sees something magnificent. As her eyes metaphorically pop out of their sockets, a voice close to her whispers in her right ear:

*How do you like this?*

Nearly breaking the small slab of wood that is the note-block Wolf gave him in two, he walks up the stairs as all the vaults are checked. While he walks up, small windows show the morning sun arising above the horizon.

*I can't believe it!* he thinks in himself. *That Fox... or Dyam for that matter has to go! Whatever the consequences! As long as those two foxes are around, Krystal and I can never be happy together!*

He is now stomping up the stairs as Wolf hears him approaching. The door opens and Panther throws the note-block somewhere unseen. Behind a panel or something; he doesn't care. In his left paw, he's holding the book that he intended to burn. In his haste, he too forgot the sprinkler. The only burned part is right side of the book cover. Starfox Log Book is written out in gold as it glitters within the bridge's lightening as Panther holds it up.

'Wuzz that?' asks Wolf completely not interested.

'This... is Fox's log book. I found this in vault 1.'

'Other vault are all okay?'

'Mwoah... vault 7 misses a large hikers backpack and vault 32, the last one, misses a black suitcase.'

'She stole a hikers backpack and a suitcase? Geh, what a criminal. Hmm... maybe you're right. Krystal has gone insane. She thinks she's a hiker and a business woman! What a joke!' laughs Wolf. Leon starts to roar as well. 'Hahahaa... you know what you should do? Hm? Call that Fara chick or that Estelle.' adds Wolf.

'Yeah. I heard that her bastard sister Rosa knows how to deal with the 'criminally insane'!' puns Leon. 'Get it!?'

Both Wolf and Leon can't hold it anymore. Tears sprout out of their eyes as the both of them can barely breath. 'Make it stop!' pleads Leon. 'Make it sto... WHAHAHAHAHA!' he continues to roar. Panther is getting very irritated while still holding up the book in the air. Wolf sees this and as a gesture of compassion, he tries to contain himself.

'Okay... heh heh... *deep breath* What is your... uh... heh heh... ahum... what's your point with that book?' asks Wolf restrained.

'This is not a log book. This Fox's diary.' states Panther.

'What a girl!' insults Leon as he too stopped laughing.

'So what?' comments Wolf. 'We already know he was a wimp. So it has been confirmed, big deal! He's gone!'

'Not if Krystal gets a hold of this.'

'What do you mean?'

'Simple. This diary... every single note... describes how miserable Fox felt every day despite the fact that he still loved her. And that at an increasing rate.'

'That sounds like a book I would like to read.' says Wolf interested. 'What else?'

'Some poems, but mostly disturbing... is the fact that you see a certain process. From Fox... to Dyam. If Krystal gets a hold on this, and sees what Fox has written about her, she'll never leave his side ever. EVER!' states Panther panicked. 'I want Fox gone... out of our lives... I want him... uh... I want him... *word comes up* DEATH!'

Like getting bitten in the butt by a snake, Wolf launches himself out of his chair as he stands before Panther. 'Panther... why didn't you tell me this before?' says Wolf very happy as he places his paw on Panthers shoulder. 'That is the solution! We kill Fox or Dyam... whatever... and all this is over. Krystal returns to us, we'll help her get over it etcetera, etcetera and you can have your life.' assures Wolf.

'When and where... is very important.' adds Leon.

'I'm well aware of that my Leon.' answers Wolf. 'We have to acknowledge, that Dyam is a big star. Killing requires precision and timing. Most importantly: no connection to us. Meaning, that we have to be hired by someone.'

'Why should that be possible? Dyam is doing great.'

'I've taken a look at that Rye guy. When he turned to Dyam and Falcon on stage, he made sure to those clowns that he was in charge. That guy is your typical money hungry manager. His attitude on stage gave me the feeling that the wants to quit doing what he's doing. But as long as the Rising Star Duo continues to make money, he is going to stay. I have to make a call, and then shit is about to go down on Dyam's popularity. Don't disturb me.' ends Wolf as he grabs his smartphone. Panther turns to Leon.

'You think he has a plan?'

'Geh heh... of course. It's Wolf O'Donell. He always has a plan. From his expression, I would say its diabolical.' states Leon.

'Let's just hope that doesn't hurt Krystal.' hopes Panther as he places the book next to Leon control panel and takes his seat on the bridge. Leon continues reading that comic and Wolf is passing a deal or something. Not wanting to eavesdrop, he turns his attention to ROB.

'Hey robot. How are you doing?' he asks.

No answer.

'Some shit here buddy. Some shit here.' says Panther as he stares out the window at the horizon. On the other side of the horizon, Sahara is standing and staring with open mouth at the racer placed in front of her. Ryan is standing to her left as he presents his masterpiece. But suddenly, he sees the enormous change Krystal went through.

'Eh... who are you?'

'I'm the real Krystal. You were right. I was faking it. This is the real me.' she states as she presents herself to Ryan, staring at her with his mouth open wide. 'What do you think?'

Inside Ryan's mind, all sorts of things are colliding with each other. He's frozen and red hot at the same time as he manages to say this: 'Well... uhm... *snaps out of it* You look alright for a desert chick.'

'Thanks Ryan. *points that the racer* Is this my racer?'

He nods. 'Absolutely. I present to you: your G-Zero Racer!' he presents proud as Sahara takes a good look at it. The orange-blue colored top half of the old Wolfen model is shown. The main body has a sandy appearance and actually feels rough like sandpaper, while the blue areas are very smooth. The blue areas are mostly around the cockpit and the wings. The wings at the original bottom of the Wolfen have been shortened, detached and placed on top of the Wolfen's body. Three custom G-Diffusers are placed around an entirely new engine. Side-stabilizers are added between the main body and the each main wing, resembling those placed on an Arwing. Except it's purpose isn't for G-Diffuser usage. They are pointing with their tips to the front in a half pyramid fashion. These are also blue. 'Desert Storm' is calligraphed in white on the right side.

'And? What about this masterpiece eh? Not bad right?' claims Ryan. Amazed about the quality that went into her racer, she slowly walks towards it.

'I got to hand it to you; that ship is strong. I have no idea how you kept it clean and strong all those years. I thought it was gonna fall apart any second, but no.' he comments as he wipes his paws clean with a towel.

'You can keep all of the money.' states Sahara simple.

'I didn't use the full budget. I was done with 700000.'

'I said: you can keep the money. *turns to Ryan* You deserve it.' she winks. Ryan catches on.

'Alright then. I'll be seeing you then, uh...'

'Sahara. Sahara is the name... Ryan.' she says as she walks off, shaking her booty a little too obvious. It doesn't matter to Ryan, who happily watches her go.

'I'll be there!' he yells after her. 'Promise!'

*MAN! That's a fine piece of work...* thinks Ryan as he opens the garage door. Once completely open, he remotely starts up the G-Diffusers and the racer starts to hover. He pushes it outside and turns it around 90 degrees. When hovering, they weigh lighter then a feather but will never be blown away. He turns it off. While doing that, he sees Sahara leave the building from the corner of his eye, catching another glimpse of her booty.

*Goddamn! Maybe I should start working on that one instead of these cars...* thinks Ryan as he goes inside again and closes the garage door. He walks back to the counter and sits down on the chair. He sees Sahara just enter her new racer. The G-Diffusers light up as the racer starts to hover again. With a quick rundown of the steering controls, it feels like controlling a normal Wolfen or even an Arwing. Slowly, the racer goes up the road and turns towards the stadium. Preforming a secret tactic, not fully seen by Ryan, the G-Diffusers look like they are spinning out of control as the Desert Storm starts to shake like there is an earthquake going on. A glowing orb is formed in between the three G-Diffusers, looking very similar to the Meteo Crusher's charge beam before it breaks down and the Desert Storm goes into a speed, whose sound comes around 5 seconds later.

'Holy shit I'M GOOD!' compliments Ryan to himself as the Desert Storm speeds towards the Colosseum.

*Let's see if Dyam likes some competition!*

The famous red tent stands again, in all its glory. The makeshift hallway is set up again as the alarm clock near Dyam's bed wakes him up with a sharp shriek. Not remembering what exactly it's supposed to be, he rises from his bed like the beginning of a new life. With an actual smile on his face, he goes to the bathroom on the other side of the hallway to do the usual stuff. His racing suit is hanging on a hook near the shower, which is still steaming since he prefers a hot shower before going on stage. Zipped up, his crew cut nice and his breath not smelling like 'energy', he feels ready to tackle another day. He opens the door to see Falcon approach from his right. He too is completely ready, but he has done something different with his hair. It looks like a failed mohawk, with three large spike resembling more like waves then actual waves. It stands pretty well with his attitude.

'New hair style?' comments Dyam.

'Still the old shit?' bites Falcon back.

Together, they laugh a little before they walk up the stairs towards the stage.

'You ready?' verifies Dyam.

'Born to be!' states Falcon as the two of them walk onto the stage. The crowd goes nuts as they wave at them. Rye, again dressed in his too tight tuxedo, comes on stage as well and grabs the microphone. Like yesterday, he starts to excite the crowd again. But, someone isn't such a fan of the duo. She is actually bored.

'Ladies and Gentlemen! My champions... DYAM AND FALCON!'

The two walk to the end of the stage, grab a pencil from their pockets. They start giving away autographs. While Dyam simply says something like 'Hello' to the fans, Falcon actually goes as far as asking phone numbers, home addresses and more while the majority of the girls gather around him. Dyam and Falcon are forced to stop when their stomachs can't take some very wrong places they are supposed to autograph on. As they step back into the background, Rye steps forward again.

'Everyone. First of all, thanks for coming. Second of all... sorry. *confusion in the audience* Yes... sorry. Why? The normal racers all backed out. I know, I know. Wimps all the way. But it's true. Simply because my two champions are waaaaay better then them. So, no race tonight. This means however... *dramatic pause* that they are going to the G-Zero Master Series on Aerosol! Tomorrow, they are on route to the next level. They are still viewable for Lylat on Channel 5.' advertises Rye.

'*sigh* But... as tradition goes... before we crown them winners of this G-Zero event, we still need to ask if anyone has any interest in challenging these champions.'

The mysterious bored girl is all of the sudden very interested.

'Well... since everyone else backed out... I can't say it very advisable to challenge them. But! For shits and giggles: ANYONE!?'

The mysterious girl raises her hand out above the crowd.

'Uh... yes. You have a question?' asks Rye as the whole crowd reveals the vixen withdrawing her paw.

'No I don't.' she states dry and cold. 'I want to challenge them.' she states as the crowd goes into its confused state again. She is not interested in what the audience thinks as she points to Dyam. Her index finger alone turns into a finger gun, which pulls the trigger at Dyam.

'Woohoo! Alrighty then. It seems we got a potential candidate!' yells Rye while Sahara blows some 'smoke' away coming from the 'barrel'. 'Come up here!' invites Rye as Sahara walks towards the stage. Rye nears Dyam.

'Who is that!? She was pointing at you!' he whispers.

'I have no idea Rye... no idea.' answers Dyam. When on stage, Falcon sees to have taken a huge liking in her.

'*whistling* Holy shit, aren't you a beauty!' he comments. 'How about some uh... Rock and Roll later tonight?' winks Falcon.

'Be careful. One more such thing, and that is exactly what you are gonna hit and what you are gonna do when *angrier* you piss me off! *very flirty* Understood, sweetheart?' mocks Sahara.

'It seems we have fierce one. What is your name sugar?'

'Sahara.'

'Sahara. Very fitting. And where do you come from Sahara?'

'I'm from Titania.'

'Of course. I should have known. Clarified! But seriously, do you know who these guys behind me are? These champions?' he asks in very disparaging tone.

Sahara looks at Dyam with his neutral facial expressions and a shrug, and to Falcon, showing off his muscles. Somewhere in the crowd, one girl faints because of it.

*Puh... windbag* thinks Sahara before answering to Rye's question. 'Hmh... tough one.' she says as he raises her index finger. '*points at Dyam* Cock-block and *points at Falcon* Lover-boy, right?'

Complete silence follows as everyone feels the massive burn the unknown Sahara managed to deliver to the great champions. As Dyam's eyes nearly fall out in shame, Falcon can barely be held back by security as he is smoking(!). Sahara let's him talk to the hand while showing off a 'can't touch this' smile before sticking out her tongue (just barely), placing her index finger on it and 'burning it out' on her right hip while she mics the sound:

'Hssss!' hisses through the red tent.

Suddenly: 'BUUUUUURN!' is yelled from the back of the audience as the tables turn in favor of Sahara.

'Woohoo! *snatches the mic from Sahara and repeats that* I'm sorry that I'm breaking the moment here, but this girl is gunning for the first place! Literally and figuratively! *turns to her* Sahara, you have managed to put up quite the show. *points at the storage at the end of the hallway* You can put your racer in there. On behalf of the manager of Dyam and Falcon and of course of the G-Zero community, I would like to welcome you: SAHARA!' screams Rye through the microphone before turning back to the audience. 'Everyone, it seems the party will be delayed by another day.' he jokingly remarks. '*laughing* Tomorrow, we will race again! The challenge is accepted!' he ends as Dyam and Falcon follow him off stage. Sahara steps off the stage the way she came but is encircled by her new horde of fans and camera crew (press) everywhere.

_(28-10-2013)_

Night falls again, as Sahara is in her garage laying the last hand on her G-Zero Racer. Her room is number 1 within the Colosseum. The number is replaced by a small symbol formed as a sandstorm. Falcon's is next to hers and Dyam is the one she previously visited. Outside of her door, Rye and Dyam are discussing her sudden appearance and what to do with her.

'Dyam. We have a problem. You guys got burned and now I'm feeling that in my wallet. And her attention is pulling ours down! She is the new love of the media!' panics Rye.

'I know, that's why I'm gonna talk to her. And don't worry; the media loves us. Even when I destroy her in a race.' ends Dyam. Rye makes her tuxedo somewhat more decent as he doesn't look happy when he turns his back on Dyam.

'Just get it done.' orders Rye as he walks away. 'Otherwise it ends our contract.' warns Rye as he turns around the corner at the end of the hallway.

Dyam turns to Sahara's door and knocks three times. But he receives no answer. Hearing Rye's words in his head, he neglects it and opens the door. He sees something a lot more pleasant then just a copy of his garage looks; Sahara is standing bend over with her head inside of the cockpit, probably laying the last hand on something.

'Maybe if I...' is heard from within as Dyam only has eyes for 'down there'. He haggles and Sahara turns around.

'Huh? *notices Dyam* Oh hey Cockblock.' she greets cynical.

A naggy laugh is Dyam's reaction before seriously suggesting: 'Look, you seem like a reasonable girl with ambition and even talent for racing. But, I'd hate to see all those positives turn into negatives when I win the race tomorrow. *strokes her face* It would be a shame to lose a girl like you as a fan.'

'Oh shut it! *pushes Dyam's paw away* I won't let you leave Lylat! Not until you're back.' she says as she leans on her racer. He doesn't like that reaction but manages to restrain himself.

*Easy Dyam. She's a little stubborn... that's all. A small conversation will reason with her...*

'Hey.' notices Dyam. 'Nice racer you got there. I swear to recognize its design...'

'Top half of an old Wolfen Mk1. It's way to heavy otherwise.'

'You know about this stuff?' asks Dyam surprised.

'What? A girl can't know about this stuff?' says Sahara as she wipes off some residue of her paws. 'Of course I know about this. I was once part of two elite mercenary-for-hire squadrons. One of which is now disbanded... but yes. I know my car.'

'What engine?' continues Dyam. *Uuuh... why do I continue asking shit? What the hell am I doing? Concentrate on the race. Do I recognize her? She... she is reminding me of someone... someone... no... it fucking can't! GET BACK YOU! It ain't gonna happen! Snap out of it!*

As his mind struggles, the flesh goes more for it as he walks around the racer.

'Ooh... the new HMX-3. Double exhaust, added lightened side-stabilizers and three G-Diffusers in triangle position for a more direct flow, increasing acceleration and grip in the tighter corners. And yours?'

'Hmh?' he notices off guard. 'Well, the GTS-X2 with upwards pointed stabilizers with two aero-flaps at the top that adjust to the air flow depending on the speed. G-Diffusers are standard Space Dynamics in a square formation for a balanced flow.'

'Arwing design huh?'

'Yeah... wait... how do you know? *What the fuck? How does she... not important! McCloud! Get back. That bitch ruined you. I'm you for you are no one, capisce!?*'

'That is a secret. But you'll know how. *turns back to her racer* See you tomorrow... Cockblock.'

At last, Dyam breaks. The fact that he can keep himself from punching her, is shown as his fist is shaking. He turns away and bites: 'Fine! Nevermind! You wanna race? I'll see you tomorrow... when you bite the dust!'

'*giggle* I know you were looking...'

'Aren't you a flirt...' ends Dyam before slamming the door shut behind him. With a huge sigh, he starts to rub his forehead.

*What am I gonna do? She is so fucking stubborn! Reminding me of that other bitch. McCloud... she is even worse then what you saw now. She's part of Starwolf. Not yours anymore. Anyway... I'm gonna kill her!* he thinks as he walks in the direction Rye went. The attention shifts towards what is happening underground...

Sahara is getting pretty popular already. With her experience as a fighter pilot, the races should be a piece of cake. But what lays ahead? Can she return the McCloud spirit? What will happen to her interest in Panther versus Fox? What is underground? Everything will have an answer... soon.


	7. First step in the wrong direction

As mentioned before, I have updated the previous chapter. With Dyam being unsuccessful at convincing Sahara to stop her efforts to him down, he walks away to prepare for the most important race in his career. But someone is already up to something, that might be more important than that. Even life threatening...  
The attention was hauled to what was going on underneath the floor of the Colosseum...  


**Chapter 6: First step into the wrong direction  
**

_A few hours earlier..._

A slight beep is heard as he is not fully focused on his surroundings, rather the sun going down already. The beep alerts him however; Wolf is finally done sealing a deal as he turns to his team. He puts the phone down and looks very enthusiastic.

'Panther my friend...' he suddenly states. 'You are gonna get your Krystal back.'

Suddenly, he sits upright in his chair. 'Really?'

'Yup. If everything goes according to my plan... *thinking* you would probably see her in about 5 days again.'

The happiness that Panther got from Wolf's earlier statement, drains of his face like wet paint on a wall, leaving behind nothing more then an angry look. '5 days? 5 DAYS!? *stands up from his chair* And you call that positive? What is your plan? Bore the living crap out of him until he dies!?' questions Panther furious.

'No, not really. I got a diplomat to care of that for me. He's from a planet called Earth. Got here by a wormhole... if I read that right in his bio.' he says while he looks through a paper stack he collected during the entire conversation between him and several organizations. Wolf doesn't seem to care that much though.

'You have no compassion, do you? I mean... do you have any idea how much *tabs on his chest plate* I worry about her? No... you don't. Why? Because you are nothing more then a miserable heap of failure!'

Something snaps within Wolf when he hears that, shown by a twitch in his left eye. 'You said what...?'

'A... miserable... heap... of failure! It describes you pretty well! Ever since I have been with you two we are always losing! And I bet it wasn't any different when you were Andross's dogs!'

'How dare you!?' growls Wolf as he makes a fist with both of his paws.

'Eh... Wolf...?' interrupts Leon.

'Fuck off Powalski!' bites Wolf harsh. 'This isn't your business!'

'Indeed it isn't.' adds Panther. 'Go back to reading your lousy comic bug! *turns to Wolf* If you ain't gonna help me... then I'll do things by myself. Leon!' he calls out.

'Y-yes?'

'Where is that bomb you made?'

'The b-bomb? You mean t-the...'

'Yes... *sigh* that one you FUCKING IDIOT!' he screams as he grabs Leon by the collar and hangs him high up in the air. Wolf looks pretty impressed as his anger disappears. seeing what is going on. 'Where... the hell... is IT!?' demands Panther while his eyes spit fire.

'It's in my room! It's in my room!' he answers panicked. 'Now, *tries to free himself* let go of me!'

Although Panther would like nothing more then to scratch out his eyeballs at this very place and grind his face to powder, he swallows it down and puts Leon back on his spot. Getting this angry is mostly reserved for Wolf, but Panther couldn't take it any longer. A slight headache comes up as he feels his head.

*Argh! I shouldn't be this angry! I'm just so confused! The whole situation with Krystal is driving me nuts! *sigh* This must be how Krystal felt... I really am a jackass first class.* degrades Panther as he kneels down on the ground, pounding his fist on the floor. Wolf sees that everything has become too much and approaches the down feeling Panther.

'Hey bud. You okay?'

'*deep sigh* I... I... just don't know what to do... *tears come out of his eyes* Does she love me... or not? Fox... Krystal... and me then!?' cries Panther.

Wolf can't stand to see his team-member in disarray. Especially when he is more experienced then Leon in terms of flying skills. 'Hey.' calls Wolf. 'I'm with you. If the whole triangle scenario is fucking with your brain that much... *offers Panther his hand* then we as a team... will take care of the weak link. One thing is missing though; are you in?' offers Wolf with a smile on his face.

Panther cannot decline this offer as he grabs Wolf's paw and is helped up by him. He tries off his tears as they give each other a manly hug, making Leon slightly jealous in the process.

'Everything better?' asks Wolf.

'Yeah... *sniff* thanks man. I needed that for a sec.'

'Anytime.' states Wolf.

'So eh... what's your plan?' asks Leon. 'It has something to do with my bomb, that's what I got out from it.'

'Smartass.' mocks Wolf.

'Alright. Listen very carefully...'

_Present time..._

'Hmmm...' echoes through the narrow tube. Water flows right underneath them as they crawl through a very dirty looking concrete pipe underneath the Colosseum.

'What? Having those thoughts again?' asks Wolf from behind him.

'No... I'm guessing that I have second thoughts again. Maybe we should just let her do this. She knows what's best for herself.'

'Haha... of course she does. By the way, you came up with the plan so don't back down!'

'Where are we anyway?' asks the third wheel.

'A place where a bug like you likes to live. Now SHUT UP! With your whining...' says Panther irritated as he crawls out the end of the sewage pipe. He lands in a small pond of green colored water, in which all sorts of goo and stuff float around in. It comes to the knees. The room itself looks like the inside of a giant straw; very narrow and the echo is terrible. Facing the 'entrance' where they came from, is another pipe where water comes out too. As they look up, they can see the moon light coming through a giant grate.

'Alright. Here's the plan all over again.' explains Panther in a soft tone. 'This sewer system is connected to the G-Zero Colosseum's Race Track. We place *grabs the bomb from his belt* this bomb right here. Now, I placed a motion-sensor on it, which is triggered by a movement. Only three racers will race tomorrow. If Dyam really is Fox, then the bomb will trigger when he's up top. Fox/Dyam gone means that Krystal is no more purpose in trying to ask forgiveness since he's nothing more then ash. And who will be there to comfort her?' asks Panther, although the answer is very obvious.

'You?' answers Leon.

'Correct. Now, we place the bomb on the ground... *drops the bomb in the water and pushes it down until it is stuck to the ground* and turn it on. *flips the switch* When it's armed, which not the case right now, it will detonate at least a second before Dyam actually goes over the grate above us. When it explodes, the intense blast and flames coming from are concentrated within this straw. That is of course when we *points at them* close these holes but we have all time. The power of these forces of nature are combined and will incinerate Dyam's racer. And with that... him too.' grins Panther evil.

'You got the spirit!' compliments Wolf a little too loud. The echo of the compliment flows through the pipe system...

'But... eh... how is this not gonna haul attention to us?' asks Leon. 'It's not like this water *scoops up some water with his hands* is flammable or something.'

Panther lifts an eyebrow. 'Oh really? Why do you think this water is colored this way? *grabs a lighter* Allow to show you something.' he says as he turns on the lighter. He grabs Leon's hand that is holding the water and the flame comes closer to the small pool. When the two meet, the water on Leon's hand catches fire immediately. Screaming like a little girl, Leon casts it off.

'Grr... not funny Panther.' comments Leon.

'See? It can explain it all. Just the slightest spark was needed. Why? *sniffs up the air with a deep breath* Do you smell that?'

'*sniff* Yeah... gasoline right?' verifies Wolf.

'Exactly. With this kind of smell, it would be very illogical not to conclude that a spark from *grabs his blaster, aims for the grate and fires* a loose rusty screw that fell out of the grate *screw falls down and splashes in the water behind Panther* and thereby created a spark, setting off the tragic chain reaction. The screw is incinerated but is lost.'

'So the cops will think it was all an accident. I love that plan!' states Wolf. 'Now, we need something like stone tablets to close the entrances. Let's do that tomorrow. Night is already old and we need a good night sleep before we blow Dyam to Kingdom Come tomorrow. Let's get out of here.'

The entire conversation echoed throughout the sewers system, but only one man to here it. Hauled towards it ever since Wolf gave that compliment, he knew that something was wrong. The plan found its way out of the sewers via an opened vent in the wall of a structure close to the Colosseum. This structure looks very old; no attended to it in years. Close to that wall, stands Ryan, back to another wall and his ears caught everything.

'Grrr... those idiots don't know that Sahara is gonna win this. She is faster on the straight parts, especially when exiting a turn. They're gonna blow her up instead of Dyam. And if Krystal is Sahara, that Panther dude is gonna fuck his own love! A step in the wrong direction... if you ask me.' he says to himself as he peeks around the corner. Leon comes out first, followed by Panther. They both reach into the vent and help Wolf out. He looks at Ryan's position. He sees nothing but a wall as Ryan is hiding behind it, hoping that they didn't see him. Starwolf walks off.

'Hey Panther...' calls Wolf.

'What is it?'

'You wanna know what else I did during that phone conversation?'

'Hm?'

'I talked to some guy with an 'R'. I don't know his name anymore but he's interested in the concept of killing Dyam.'

'So you have two backups now eh?' comments Leon.

'Indeed I have. The diplomat and some other guy. It is all very hazy at the moment but everything will be clarified as soon as the flames have cleaned our pride.' states Wolf as they disappear out of Ryan's field of vision.

'I don't give a shit about some diplomat. I can simply track him down when he arrives. What I do care about is that 'R' guy... I need to find out who he is before he can touch Sahara!' he states to himself as he runs off, towards his house. 'Time to get some stuff to take care of that bomb.'

A short chapter, but still. Panther's plan is revealed and it seems that Starwolf is determined to get Krystal back by killing her source of agony: Fox McCloud, or in this case still Dyam. What if Ryan is right about Sahara's advantage? Who is that 'R' guy Wolf was talking about and why a diplomat?


	8. Sabotage the sabotage

With the bomb placed underneath the circuit, everyone might be in danger. Ryan already ran off to get hi stuff, but is he on time?  


**Chapter 7: Sabotage the sabotage **

The orange morning sun rises slowly behind the G-Zero Colosseum on Papetoon. On the upstanding pillars, birds gather around, staring into the sunrise. The front of the Colosseum and the grass-field in front of that are hauled in the shadow, which the birds contribute to. The weather report said that today was going to be rather hot, so people tend to stay in the shadow of the Colosseum. Scattered about in small groups, they sit on the grass or lean against trees. But all of them do the exact same: watching YouTube with their smartphones or wristpads. What are they watching? Numerous videos about Sahara burning the rising stars on stage yesterday with already 200000 views for the original video, counting in total for around 500000 views for just Papetoon City alone. The sound of the bars in front of the ticket counters is heard as everyone comes towards them like a fly to a Venus flytrap, putting everything else aside for the first tickets. Friends included. The big screen a la times square lights up above the counters as big LCD letters spell out in orange: Sahara VS Dyam VS Falcon: TODAY! As the first tickets are sold and the first fans hastily make their seats, the rows at the counters aren't getting smaller at all. A relative silence around and inside the stadium, is shattered as the commentator tabs his microphone twice.

'*long beep* Test 1, 2, 3... ahum... *haggle* test 1, 2... okay it's fine. Last one... *haggle* Alrighty then... *suddenly very loud as nearly all speakers burst* WELCOME everybody to the G-Zero Grand Prix! Held in the G-Zero Colosseum in our beautiful Papetoon City. *crowd cheers* In this race, the standing champions have to defend their tickets to the G-Zero Master Series... in the famous... *presses a button on his control pad* RING TO AEROSOL!' screams the commentator through the microphone as the still standing 8-track breaks in two. The bridge going over the road is hauled to their respective right, like the staircases in Harry Potter. As they descend down into the opened up ground, a standard NASCAR circuit is formed, looking like a '0'. The large pole lights up and starts up to the screen.

'The tickets are within their grasp *displays the tickets on the screen with Dyam and Falcon's hand reaching for it* but they are getting competition... *sudden explosion on screen blows the tickets away* Ladies and Gentlemen, I present Dyam and Falcon!' introduces the commentator as the two walk out of the garages underneath the penthouse/'commentator spot. Dyam and Falcon walk up proud towards the track under guidance for a public going wild. Falcon goes completely showoff again while Dyam retains his fairly neutral expressions. Intense 'party hard' music mixed with the audience blasts through the stadium as they stop in their tracks as they hear a shrieking whistle behind them. It makes them turns around as the front of a black-orange boot sets itself in the light while the rest remains in the shadow of the garage. The music and the screaming of the audience (for the most part) is suddenly cut when the screen shows something different and the music turns to more ambient and rather clamped down tone, filling the stadium in a mysterious atmosphere. The smoke from the previous explosion makes way for flames formed out of pure sand, made by CGI, as Sahara's face appears on the big screen above the sand flares. Some of the tattoos she extended appear next to her face on both sides, as if they mean anything. She smiles a bit at it. As if the screen didn't add to the atmosphere, recorded sounds of the wind blowing are played jointly with the ambient music as the commentator comes closer to the microphone in a lower and slower manner:

'And then, on to the challenger. *A hard bass a la Slenderman comes in which shakes everything and everyone throughout the stadium* From the barren desert planet of Titania, *Bass* from an unknown tribe since we can't decipher the tattoos, *Bass* comes the young lady that robbed many fans' hearts, *Bass* when she 'burned' the champions in public... *Bass and the music is gone followed by a long silence* put your paws together *hard again* for SAHARAAAAAA!' screams the commentator through the microphone.

Men could swear the Colosseum exploded the moment Sahara walks out of the garage like a supermodel. She is quasi-impressed by the size of the stadium and the size of the crowd.

*Ryan was right. It seems all those people are bored beyond believe. *small smirk* Geh... I'll give them a show.* she states to herself as she head for the track. However, Dyam and Falcon stopped about a few meters before the actual track, while Sahara goes a little further than that, showing off her confidence in her victory and rubbing her bravery and popularity into Falcon's angered face and Dyam's face hiding a fierce indecisiveness between himself. She stomps her left boot on one of the track-lights, making the sun underline her appearance as she wips her hair back with her left back. Falcon can't believe she gets most of the attention.

'*points at her* Are we just gonna stand her and let her do whatever she wants!?' asks Falcon to Dyam.

'For now. Let her have her moment. She is probably too stubborn to realize she's going down when I race her out!' encourages Dyam to himself.

'Oh yeah. That's right. You gotta win. Otherwise, it's just me leaving for the Master Series and you'll be stuck here until the next change comes up.' remembers Falcon.

'Exactly. So we must take her out at all costs.' Falcon couldn't agree more as they both turn to Sahara, still standing on the track-light. However, a beep is heard coming from the garage, signaling everyone to get back. Dyam and Falcon enter first and Sahara follows in a faster pace.

'Now that everyone is seen in person, we'll take a 5 minute break from all this stuff. Within these 5 minutes however, the racers will be busy laying the last hand on their racers before they'll preform the 'Route of Honor' around the circuit. See you after the short break.' ends the commentator. In the garage, things are about to get somewhat agitated as Sahara cuts off Dyam and Falcon in their way.

'Good luck on the track *swallow* boys.' she says with some inconvenience. *What the... I almost went back to my accent. Probably because I said 'boys' in my accent before. On Sauria it was if I remember correctly.* Luckily, Dyam and Falcon barely noticed it.

'We don't need luck!' bites Falcon harsh as he pushes her left right shoulder away. Not tolerating that she is used as the left side of a door from a classic bar in cowboy movies, she grabs Falcon's arm and throws him against a close wall.

'Ouch!' comments Dyam. *Remain focused on the race. Don't let her fool you like she did! These chicks aren't worth another broken heart, believe me!*

Sahara continues and places Falcon's arm on his back and turns it into the opposite direction it's supposed to turn to. Falcon himself is too confused about the surprise attack and in too much pain as well to return any favors. She places her chin on his left shoulder, close to his left ear and whispers: 'Go molest some other girl Loverboy.'

With these words said, she lets go of Falcon who drops down on the ground like a immovable ragdoll.

'See you at the finish line Cockblock.' she flirts towards Dyam as she 'shoots' him again with the finger gun before leaving Dyam behind with his mouth open and frozen in his place. *Holy mother of... Ahum... first of all: close that mouth *mouth closes* Second: I would facepalm you if I could. And the last thing: WAKE THE FUCK UP!*

A few minutes later...

The cockpit closes around her as she starts up the procedures. She checks the G-Diffuser stats and their movement, the Fuel Cell count and finally the connection with the other racers, which is somehow installed for convenience. It appears as a blue, holographic and oblong speech-balloon showing Dyam and Falcon's faces. She holds her finger on Dyam's as she enlarges it, kicking Falcon's somewhere in the top corner. Might as well be in the map 'Not important'. Dyam is busy strapping himself down as he already went through all the procedures. He sees the connection between him and Sahara and greets her friendly with a salute by just his index finger before closing the channel.

*Was that Fox... or Dyam?* thinks Sahara confused. *Anyway... I'll make sure that Fox returns out of the depths I made him plummet into. But that Falcon *glares at this picture* he's nothing but an annoyance when it comes to my mission. I think I'm gonna use that point system to Falcon's disadvantage. How? Not sure yet... *grabs the control stick* but I'll figure something out eventually.* she ends her thoughts when the engine exhaust lights up in a white flare before the Desert Storm starts to hover. The garage door opens and lets a lot of light in as she is partially blinded until her eyes are starting to get used to it. She paces forward and sees that Dyam is on her left and Falcon on her right as they hover towards the track. The crowd goes berserk again as the microphone shrieks through the audience. The racers start their 'Route of Honor' as they parade around the track.

'Up front...' starts the commentator. '...we have one of the rising champions: Dyam. A neutral guy with a strong will when it's about G-Zero. He pilots his Arwing III.' says the commentator as the big screen shows all action scenes.

'Wouldn't I be delighted if I show a close-up of his **final **action scene...' grins Wolf somewhere in the audience as he watches the racers pass by.

'At number 2 we have Falcon Lombardi. Mister popular with the ladies... except for Sahara. *laughter* Anyway, he pilots his Bird of Prey.' Falcon's over the top action are shown on the big screen as Falcon himself is proud of it. The screen cuts to static as a large circle with a question mark appears.

'As last but most certainly not least, we have Sahara, the mysterious girl that come out of the blue by challenging our champions. She pilots her Desert Storm.'

While Sahara waves at the audience, she is actually scanning throughout the crowd, as if she's looking for someone in particular. When see accidentialy spots Panther, she pulls her face away as if he was the ugliest thing ever to roam the Lylat system.

*YIKES! He can't see me! Dyam might not or not completely recognize me but Panther will. *focuses on the crowd again* Now... were is he? Between all that blue in the audience it should be hard to find his yellow fur, right?* thinks Sahara as she searches for Ryan. She is disappointed as the Round of Honor is over and she hasn't managed to spot Ryan. She gets a little angry and blows away a string of hair that was hanging before her eyes.

*I hate it when people say they show up and then they don't!*

But Ryan is certainly there. Even closer to Sahara then she would ever think. Under the racers, Ryan maneuvers through the pipe system in order to find the bomb within the 'straw' leading upwards to the circuit. He squeezes his nose with his fingers against the awful smell of shit and gasoline.

'Where the hell is that thing!?' complains Ryan. 'Bleh! It's fucking gross here.'

The moment he finished that sentence, the ground starts to rumble a little as the G-Zero racers left their starting positions with Dyam up front and Sahara being number 3 as they go into the first turn. The screen shows once more the total of 80 laps. For Panther, it's the signal to arm the bomb. He grabs his remote from the inside of his breast plate and presses the button. The beep is loud but mostly drowned by the water surrounding it. It bleeps every time a large amount of movement, in this case the racers coming by. In total counting up to 80, before violently exploding. This is proven as the ground above bomb starts to rumble to and the bomb bleeps once. A small oscilloscope-like LC screen above the button shows the intensity of the rumbling caused and also shows the beep as sharp sting shooting upwards. The line goes flat again as the racers pass by but Panther keeps observing it.

*Addicted freak.* insults Leon in his mind. Wolf is on the contrary very fond of Panther's determination. Another thing is pretty impressed about is the challengers sudden burst:

Sahara sees Dyam and Falcon racing up front, next to each other with fairly large space between them as they enter another turn to the left towards the finish line.

*How do I get past those guys? Wait a minute... control like an Arwing... *exits the turn* that means that I can tilt as well! *activates camera at the back as the video-feed appears on the holographic screen* In triangle position, two pointed downwards to the ground and one up in the air. Like a Wolfen always had. Hopefully this thing hovers high enough to preform this trick!* she thinks as she 'breaks' the control stick's knob and pulls the emergency brake while enlarging the G-Diffusers. Her whole ship goes James Bond and passes right between Dyam and Falcon. While Falcon is greeted by the underside, Dyam sees Sahara wink at him for a brief moment before she blasts off in front of them, under heavy support of the crowd.

'What the hell?' comments Dyam surprised. 'Did she just...? In a turn!?'

'She's crazy! But... I got a plan to take care of her.' smirks Falcon.

'Like where that maniacal smirk is going Falcon. Tell me.' says Dyam, looking forward to see Sahara fail in her attempt to knock him off.

'Her G-Diffusers!' states Falcon.

'What about them?'

'In triangle position is mostly for speed purposes. However, these things contribute on more then just the exhaust flow, steerage skills etcetera, but also keeping the ship itself hovering stable. When we the destroy or damage the two on the underside of her Desert Storm...'

'...only the top one will remain functional. *realization followed by a strong enthusiasm* That means... that she'll borrow her own ship into the track!' concludes Dyam.

'Indeed. So, how about it?'

'Let's ram this bitch into her own grave!' states Dyam as the two set in the pursuit on Sahara's racer as they enter the 3rd lap.

'Ladies and Gentlemen, this is unbelievable! The challenger, Sahara, just topped off the champions! And that in the 3rd lap already! If Dyam really wants to go to the Master Series on Aerosol with his partner Falcon, he needs to win this race.' comments the commentator. This gets Sahara thinking...

The thinking is however short lived as the camera to the rear sends out an alert. She quickly snaps out of it and opens up the video feed. She is shocked to see that Dyam and Falcon are trying to ram her.

'What are those fools think they are doing!? Why just my sides? *evades a bump caused by Falcon by tilting her ship* Hey! *evades another by Dyam by tilting the other way* Cut it out!'

'You think she's getting it?' asks Falcon.

'No... not yet. We need to do this at the same time. She on to us, know our plan, but she got nowhere to go. Time to slam her down!' states Dyam while his words and facial expression hide his inner conflict with the passenger of his own body.

*Watch as I borrow your ex's look-a-like into the ground McCloud! It seems you're pretty interested for her... so let's put on some nice fitting music for when she breaks down... literally!* states Dyam harsh as he puts in a cd.

*Cool Without You by DI-RECT plays*

'This song is very fitting. How about you Falcon?' But Falcon is already gone up in the song's mood to react. 'I thought so. Let's take her down!'

The Arwing III and the Bird of Prey catch up with Sahara's Desert Storm, which Sahara notices. '*Grumble* These guys are very determined. They really want to mess my racer up, don't they? *looks behind her* Yup... those faces speak volumes. *idea* Good one Sahara. Pushing telepathy aside for a brief moment is a good way to clear your mind... same as at Ryan's garage.' she says to herself when suddenly she decreases in speed, scaring the living hell out of Falcon and Dyam, who are barely able to evade Sahara.

'WHAT THE HECK!?' screams Falcon as he tilts his ship over Sahara's side-stabilizers and passes her by. 'I told you she was nuts!'

'*gasping heavily* That was one adrenaline rush! And you how much as a rush fucks up my temper!' states Dyam confused and angered.

'Easy bud... where up front again. She has problems of her own I see...' claims Falcon as Sahara looks like she's trouble.

'Oh no! Sahara's Desert Storm is having some problems! Her G-Diffusers are going completely nuts!'

*giggle* It seems my plan is working. Everyone thinks I'm having trouble while in fact I'm charging up. But let's give them a show...* thinks Sahara as she starts to act as if her racer indeed was breaking down. The G-Diffusers are going in all directions while the races itself tilts slightly to the right and left. They energy starts to build up again. This causes unwanted shock-waves going over the tracks... and underground. Panther suddenly notices a slight change in the flat line of the screen.

'Hm?' notices Panther.

'What's up Panther?' asks Wolf.

'Probably... *sharp sting indicating another beep* No... that's not possible!'

'What not?'

'Whatever Sahara is doing, it is triggering the bomb's beep! It needs 80 in total and already 5 have been registered!'

'But that means that...'

'Indeed.' adds Panther. 'If this goes on for any longer... it will explode without Dyam in the blast!'

Suddenly, when the counter hits 47, Sahara's Desert Storm blasts off towards Dyam and Falcon as the bomb counts 48. In the rapid dash that follows, the crowd is almost blown away from their seats.

'Unbelievable! Sahara, whatever she did, is back in the game!' The crowd goes completely insane as Wolf whispers to Panther. 'Manual override. They'll never hear that shrieking noise with all their own noise.' Panther nods and flips a switch on the side of the controller. The shrieking noise is drowned by the crowd, but in the underground, it echoes towards Ryan's ears.

'GOTCHA!' he states as he crawls through the right pipe this time. '*notices the block closing it off* Oh great. Hrrrrrr... *pushes it out as it splashes into the water* This most be it. *looks up to see the racers pass over the grate* Closed off pipes, one way... bomb... those Starwolf goons are using the design of this cylinder to blow the immense firestorm coming from the bomb upwards to roast Dyam's ass. Now... let's see what kind of bomb it is.' says Ryan to himself as he takes a deep breath before bending over into the water.

'Now.' commands Wolf as Panther pushes the button as the racers, with Dyam still up front, approach the end of the turn.

Ryan sees the bomb and it's bleeping red light as it is armed.

*Simple bomb design.* he concludes. *TNT and C4 hardwired together to a motherboard with a motion-sensor. Easy to make, *grabs a pair of small bolt cutters* and easy to dismantle.*

He cuts off the wires connecting it to the motherboard. However, the light doesn't die. On the contrary, it starts to blink in an unremitting pace as Ryan notices a small device attached to the motion-sensor.

*A delayer! FUCK!* scares Ryan as he retreat back into the pipe he came in. *Well... I've done what I could. Now the firestorm will come through the nearest hole. Guess who's!?* He exits the narrow pipe and comes down to a crossroad while standing in a pool of dirt. Knowing that he can't escape, he falls face down into the pool. The rumbling begins again as Panther triggers the bomb. It explodes the moment Dyam races over the grate, but the firestorm follows the nearest hole indeed as it flows right over Ryan's back. A few seconds later, Ryan is relieved to breath in fresh air and seeing that he's not in heaven. He stands proud, until the smell and disgust of the substances he has on his body wipe the floor with his hero moment. He leaves the sewers to take a long shower.

Wolf and Panther, who sat on the very edge of their seats, look very disappointed. Panther's expression turns from worst to 'wait, it gets even worse' in a blink of an eye.

'Leon...' he says very restrained. 'I though your bomb was fail-proof...'

'Nice plan Caroso.' mocks Wolf. 'Now it's gonna be that Ray guy... or what was his name again... nevermind!'

Sahara is up top again in lap 27 and doesn't give away her position until the last lap. She has been thinking about what the commentator said.

*If they both want to go to Aerosol together, Dyam must win. That means Falcon is number 1 in the rankings with Dyam on place 2. I must win against Dyam but lose to Falcon. That's a plan! Falcon finishes first and goes to Aerosol. I'll finish second and remain in the G-Zero and Dyam needs to start all over! I love my own ideas!* she thinks as she sees Falcon trying to pass her from the right and Dyam is coming in hot from her left. The final lap is called in as they enter the first turn. Her heart starts to pound, same with Dyam. This is something he haven't felt in very long while: adrenaline and the will to win. The McCloud spirit!

*It's time!* Sahara sees her change as they exit the last turn when Dyam boosts up towards her left side. She brakes left out of nowhere and blocks off Dyam. This forces him to brake too while Falcon goes with full throttle over the finish. Sideways, Sahara finishes second with Dyam on the third spot.

Everything goes the right way. Ryan took care of the bomb, Panther is pissed off and Dyam stays within the G-Zero with Sahara. Her changes without Falcon in her way of returning the real Fox, are a lot bigger. How will Dyam react?


	9. Return of McCloud

Sahara's action launched Falcon's ass towards Aerosol and put Fox out that launch in the process. Her action is all over the media, spreading like wildfire. Let's see how Dyam himself reacts to his best friend leaving and his reputation shattered.  


**Chapter 8: Return of McCloud  
**

The situation behind the celebrating Colosseum, with the undergoing sun making the sky brown with a savanna-like environment behind that, is very emotional. Going from landscape to another seems typical for Papetoon. Two friends, ripped apart from each other by the hunt of fortune and fame. Falcon, the guest of honor who already left the party early. And Dyam, the Rising Star who had a major downfall. On one hand, Falcon himself he's happy to finally pursue his dream to become popular in the Master Series and soon become a household name in the G-Zero Universe. On the other... it sucks to leave his best friend behind to be the fallen one, who didn't make it. Dyam feels the same as they stare at the road ahead of them, with the Colosseum right behind them.

'The end of the line eh?' comments Falcon without looking at his bud. Dyam shakes his head.

'No... it's the road to a new beginning.' he says to encourage Falcon to move on, like he can take care of it all by himself.

'More like a highway to hell.' puns Falcon as he picks up his suitcases he packed from his trailer. Unnoticed by him, his trailer is getting cleaned out for the possible next guest. Rye already arranged everything, showing his true affection to one of his 'champions' by directing everything.

'I'm right behind you bud.' says Dyam as he too picks up some suitcases before catching up with Falcon. Together, they walk towards the highway going towards the horizon with a pair of sand mountains next to them. A small blue square in the distance soon becomes the bus stop from which Falcon has to swallow before sitting down on the bench inside of it. Dyam leans against the bus stop's sign on the outside while chewing on a wooden spike, giving Falcon some room for himself and staring down at a few red roses in the distance.

Everything went so fast suddenly. Falcon bows his head and let it all come over him as the remembers everything from the moment Sahara pulled off that trick.

*First... there was Sahara's sudden stop. Bitch nearly killed me! Her sudden catch up and finally that stunt that got Dyam out of all... And all that within a race of around a half hour! *slams his fist on the bench* SON OF A BITCH! I... I mean... daughter... of a bitch... I can't even curse properly anymore! What has come over me!?* he pities as more still images about his leaving and Dyam's facial expression about that plague his mind. Dyam heard the slam of his fist and turns to him.

'Are you okay Falcon?'

'Hrm? Yeah... I'm fine... I guess. I going to Aerosol!' states Falcon badly acted. 'I'm happy as a child *rises from the bench and stands with one foot on the road already* who got a N64 for Christmas! That how fucking happy I'am!' he ends angered. Dyam laughs it off, saying: 'I've seen that home-video too many times already. Besides... it's your turn to shine.'

'What do you mean?'

'Well... as former Ace Pilot of Starfox, you were always in Fox's shadow. Number 2 all the way. And now you're having trouble with being number 1!? *spits out the wooden spike, puts his hands in his pockets and walks towards Falcon* Come Falcon. This is your big moment. If leaving me is the only reason why you shouldn't go... then you really need to let yourself be checked out.' jokes Dyam.

'Oh... you see it like that.' says Falcon disappointed. 'Well... I knew you were somewhat cold but... eh... your best bud is leaving and... what the...?' says Falcon surprised the cold and distant Dyam because warm and very personal in an instant when he starts to hug Falcon tight.

'Of course I'm gonna miss you buddy. You are my best friend... always have been. *lets go of him while still having his paws on his shoulders* And always will be.' states Dyam proud as he feels some manly tears coming up as he turns away.

'I-I'm sorry Falcon. Got something in my eye...' defends Dyam quickly.

'I saw those tears Fox.' hears Dyam while Falcon didn't actually see Fox at all. Or did he... *Am I starting to hear things too? Perfect! That Sahara chick is gonna get me killed someday!* Like he never heard that, he pads Falcon one last time on his shoulder as the white shuttle-bus arrives to take Falcon to the spaceport. Falcon gets in with a slow pace, really showing his disgust for entering this bus in the first place while the chauffeur and Dyam store his suitcases underneath the bus in the loading area. They shut the doors and the chauffeur gets back in. Falcon buckles himself down with the seatbelt and stares out of the window towards Dyam. He shows a vague smile on his, not exactly sure whatever to be happy or sad. This is the way of doing that at the same time. After a last wave between friends, the bus leaves. After a few moments, it's nothing more than a small dot in the distance. Fox(!) watches him go...

Sahara too seems to have left the party as she approaches the bus stop where the sad Fox standing next to. He notices her from the corner of his eye as he turns to her.

'Hey Krystal... uhm...' stumbles Fox quickly as he swallows down his words. *Did I really say Krystal to Sahara!? I mean... yeah. She looks almost alike. Less sandy, but...*

She can't believe her own hears as she really just heard that. Blinking her eyes fast and feeling if her ear is blocked up somewhere doesn't seem to change that. *Is.. is.. that you? Really... you f-Fox?* she thinks as a tear of joy from her soul herself comes out of her left eye socket. *What is that? A..a tear? Do-do I still love him then? That feeling... that very special feeling... but... I love Panther... or...*

'I mean uh... Sahara of course.' says Fox awkward as he scratches the back of his head. He starts to blush.

'Well, thanks for the compliment.' answers Sahara as he wips her hair back, hiding the fact that she is actually blushing as well. 'I hear she was a nice girl.'

*Nessun Dorma plays*

'Yeah. *looks up in the sky, becoming more night as seconds pass* Yes, she was. *points upwards to the skies* You know... *looks at Sahara again* what I sometime do when I feel myself? I look up...*looks up* into the skies. I always pretend that between those many shining stars, one star would suddenly appear. Its power and light... exceeding any other star. From that exact star, a small dot would come and was nearing me. As it got closer... I would see it form into her ship: the Cloud Runner. Her own personalized Arwing, would come flying towards me. It would land right before me as I would experience feelings... that would exceed any poets capabilities. My heart would sing the purest love song of all. My face would speak ten thousand volumes of the most popular and wheedling love romans and even that... would tarnish in comparison... to everything I just mentioned. As the cockpit opens, I would see her face. Her beautiful white face would turn to me. Her ocean deep turquoise blue eyes, where anyone unworthy of her beauty would be honored to drown in. Her smile... the warmth and kindness could make a dying star shine again. She would step out of her ship, her feet would only touch the wings slightly as they light up with a heavenly white color. She would be dressed like the princess, the pure angel she so truly is as she would almost seem to float towards me. Tiles and parts she would walk/float over would light up as well. As my thoughts say nothing more then 'I'm unworthy...', I would kneel before her like a knight before the queen.'

'Rise Fox...' she commands with a voice giving me goosebumps. She reaches out her arm, with her index finger pointing at me. As she lifts it, I raise my head to see into her eyes, sparkling. I would hold her paw softly and say that I'm sorry... so very sorry. I would beg her for forgiveness as I bow my head once more. However... *closes his open hand into a fist, as if everything he just told Sahara was in the palm of his hands all along* I have killed that dream... I dreamed.' ends Fox as he closes his eyes when tears stream out.

'She was and still is my inner torch... keeping me from freezing inside. *looks at Sahara again* So yeah... she was the nicest girl I have ever met in my life.'

In the meantime, the moon has started to rise above the horizon, making a perfect background for the scene coming up. Sahara just stands there, speechless. Her mind is busy trying to figure out everything she feels... but sometimes... it's better to just let it all come over you.

'And if she would stand here...' continues Fox as he walks towards her until he's within the range in which they can feel each others heart beat* '...right in front of me... then... no matter what she would say... *grabs Sahara's face. His paws are full of life and warmth. The wind blows some hair before her face, eyes and mouth but Fox wipes them away* no matter would she would mutter, think or do... I would kiss her. Till the very end of days I would I had to' states Fox as he comes closer to Sahara's face. 'My queen of Lylat...' ends Fox.

Krystal is not resisting at all and surrenders herself to Fox. The petals from the roses fly by the couple as their lips come closer to one another. But on the point of climax, she feels the life force and warmth drain from his hands. He hastily retreats his arms, takes a step back and stands there frozen.

'Uh... Fox?'

'Who's Fox? *notices Sahara* Oh! *blunt* Hey Sahara...'

'Good to see you too Dyam...'

'Can you explain what you did there? *points at the Colosseum* You ruined my reputation! What was the meaning of that stunt!?' demands Dyam.

'I told you that I won't let you leave Lylat!' she nags back.

Dyam angrily waves it off and walks away, back to the stadium. 'I'm going back to the party! You remember this: You ruin my reputation, I ruin you!' threatens Dyam by suggesting to snap her neck in two. However, Sahara saw a certain spark in Dyam's eyes when he said 'ruined my reputation'. Ambiguous as it is for reality, also for the position of Fox versus Dyam, his eyes are signaling 'well done' or 'thanks' depending on personal preference. She crosses her arms as she takes both compliments for granted before following Dyam back to the stadium.

When they go separate ways in the Colosseum, Dyam gets a call. He looks who it is and reads: Rye. He picks up.

*Phone*

_Oh... hey Rye._

_Dyam... we need to have a talk. The trailers aren't for you guys anymore. I managed to arrange something better. A luxurious hotel in the city. Hopefully that will get you somewhere. I'll text you the address. _

_Okay... uh Rye..._

_Spare me the excuses. Just be there._

*Phone*

The next day, the red tent is set up again as the whole trailer park behind it including the makeshift hallway is gone. Instead, it's the plain grass fields again. This time the tent is attracting even more crowd as more people would like to challenge the Fallen One, also known as Dyam. Dyam is in his room, thinking over everything what happened. He's sitting in the dark on his bed; he has no intention for any light right now. Suddenly, Rye storms in. He slams the door open and lights breaks into Dyam's room. Rye flips the light switch, calms down somewhat, grabs a chair and sits down in front of Dyam with a sigh.

'Look... listen.' he says. 'What happened yesterday... just happened? Okay? Now... *pads on Dyam's knee* your chances aren't wasted yet. You got two more chances to finish first. So keep that stupid *pads on his cheek* head of you together, alright?'

Dyam nods.

'Perfect. I'll see you on stage, in a minute.' says Ryan as he leaves the room and stands in the hallway. He flips his phone opens and dials speed-dial 1. In that same red carpeted hallway, Ryan decides to have a nice breakfast down below in the restaurant. As soon as he reaches for the button of the elevator after scratching away some annoying 'wake up itch', he hears Rye yell into his phone.

'Fuck that!' he hears. 'That guy *points at Dyam's room* is causing me to lose too many fucking money! Now, he loses his chance and you'll get yours. We have a deal? *evil grin* Great! Later then.' He hangs up and walks off. At that moment, a ding signals the elevators arrival. Ryan steps in, not really knowing what to think. His eyes spring open as he realizes a sudden connection, but the door are already closed.

A moment later, Dyam exits his room and heads for the red tent. He meets Rye there, who was just finished calling somebody else. 'Fallen One' is heard from within the tent.

'Hey Dyam.' greets Rye very happy all of a sudden. 'You know, that Fallen One is actually pretty catchy. Race under that motto, win the next two races and you're still in!' he proudly presents. 'You get an amazing comeback and get to together with your Falcon friend. How about it? Hmh?'

Just as Dyam tries to answer, Fox turns his head away.

*What the hell do you think you're doing?!  
McCloud, how the... you actually speak.  
Yeah, I do. Now neglect that offer! Krystal is waiting!  
I told you stubborn deaf idiot: Sahara isn't Krystal!  
You look her in the eye and say that again you piece of shit!  
Oh, I will. Right in the FACE I will! Until then, get back into you chains of forget! And don't even try to come out again!*

All Rye sees, is Dyam's head turned away from him, quietly insulting, probably, someone else.

'Uhh...' he interrupts. 'Hopefully I don't disturb your inner discussion...' he apologizes cynical.

'No no. It's, it's nothing. You were saying?' continues Dyam.

'Not important, comes soon enough. *lays his paw on Dyam's back* Now, entertain them with your presence! *pushes him on stage*'

Dyam walks on the stage on the crowd cheers. Rye grabs the microphone.

'Hey everybody! The Fallen One has arrived. Anyone wanna challenge him?'

As a lot of paws go up in the air, Dyam feels the excitement again. That fact that he didn't have real competition for about a year, changed him into the neutral and cocky Dyam he is. Now that it's back, he feels energy inside him: a sign that Fox rises. A chain breaks as a sandy-blue paw is raised later than the rest. He looks and realizes that the arm belongs to just one person and one person only...

'Alright Fallen One.' continues Rye. 'It seems you got a lot of competition going on. Choose your competitors!'

Fox doesn't need much time to say: 'Sahara.'

*McCloud! Didn't I till you to get back into your chains!?  
Pfff... bad quality chain you hooked me on!  
You son of a...  
Tuut... tuut... this the voice-mail of: *pause* Fox McCloud. Leave your message after the go fuck yourself!*

Sahara happily gets up the stairs and stands beside Fox, very close. As a subtle tip to make sure that Fox's thoughts about her were true and establish a definitive place for Fox as opposed to Dyam, she, unnoticeable, takes out her contacts. It reveals her real, deep blue eyes, sparkling bright as she looks at Fox. He smiles back at her but then concentrates on picking more competitors. It's Dyam again, grudgingly accepting Fox's decision, picking out some very strong, tough looking one. This, not for the adrenaline of competition, but for the increase in irritation and misery Fox gets when things don't really go the way he wants. Therefore decreasing Fox's position. After five other are chosen, one guy makes his way through the crowd. He looks nothing like anyone else as he walks confused through the crowd in suit and is carrying in a suitcase. Dyam notices him.

'You!' points Dyam at the unknown man.

'Who? Me?' says the man confused. 'For what?'

'Like you don't now.' says Dyam blunt. '*points behind him* Go ahead the scenes and wait there with the rest. And for fuck's sake take off that dumb suit you dipshit! Are you trying to bore me to death?'

'*awkward laugh* From what I heard over the phone that was the intention at first...' ends the man as he walks over to 'behind the scenes.' With all the competitors chosen, everyone leaves the red tent to go either back to the stadium or do anything else to kill time.

Night falls and the lights of the Colosseum are turned on as the whole crowd have retaken their seats. Still, Ryan is nowhere to be found.

'Why are we still here?' complains Leon. 'It's not like we are gonna see Dyam get killed on track.'

'Seeing Fox lose was a pretty nice aftertaste to Panther's failed plan. Plus, he paid so I don't mind.

'By the way, Krystal roams around her as well.' adds Panther.

'Yeah, and we are supposed to meet the guy... uhm, what was his name again? Rai, Ray... RYE! Yes, it was Rye!' remembers Wolf. 'We spoke on the phone!'

'For what exactly?'

'Well, the diplomat I was talking about received his orders a little scrambled, causing him to accidentally mess up his easy task and now... he's a G-Zero racer himself. He already had a car and someone is currently busy changing it up. I heard that Garfunkel has an excellent mechanic to complete that task. As for that Rye guy, I have no clue why he needs us. But has something to do with Fox/Dyam and death!' assures Wolf as he leans back in his chair. 'Try to relax Panther. Everything will be fine.'

With a sigh, Panther leans back as well. Behind him, a button is pressed and stops the slight buzzing of the recording tape. A grey tape recorder disappears behind a wall, held by a yellow paw.

'Welcome everybody to another G-Zero race!' states the commentator. 'Tonight, especially for the occasion, TWO races will be held instead of the usual one. The Fallen One, who was defeated by the newcomer Sahara, needs to fight his way through seven hard competitors, Sahara included. Selected as number 1, we have Sahara!'

The crowd goes nuts when she appears into the bright stadium lights. After the other six are introduced, some very different looking man approaches the scene.

'As last, we have Chase Harris! A... uh... *looks on a cheat sheet* human diplomat from a planet called Earth. He got to our system by some sort of wormhole incident. Anyway, an applause for Chase!'

The once nervous and confused human, feels home already. Wearing a pair of dark sunglasses, his red and black racing suit, his NASCAR gloves, (Red, Black, and White) and matching boots, he stands proud on the track as the crowd starts to show some love to him. A large photograph of him appears on the screen, showing his facial features. His eyes are as turquoise as water and he is a natural red-head. A journalist comes up to him and asks him a few questions.

*Interview*

_Excuse me Chase. My name is Marian Montreal from Papetoon Channel 5 News. Mind if I ask you a few questions?_

_*takes off his sunglasses* Of course._

_Your voice has a slight Southern drawl, am I right?  
_

_That's right indeed. My parents were born in a city called Atlanta but they moved to the area, also known as Tampa in Flordia, where I got my accent when I was born._

_How does it feel to be the only human in our system?_

_At first, it sucked. And at some points, it still does. I don't see my family, friends and everyone else... but for the rest. I live in Corneria City and met General Pepper. So... hey, at last I'm not an outcast eh?_

_You seemed pretty confused the first time people were introduced to you, but now you're very confident. Why the sudden change?_

_I got a scrambled message, only saying that I'm supposed to be in a red tent close to the Colosseum or something. With the cover of diplomat, I gained diplomatic immunity and was able to travel to Papetoon without any problems. _

'Guess who gave you that message idiot!' bites Wolf at the television in the bar where he's drinking.

_I already have experience on Earth when it comes to racing so I will have no trouble in taking care of all other goons._

_Thanks Mr. Harris. _

_Please... call me Hurricane._

*Interview*

After the interview, everyone goes back into their designated changing rooms instead of their garages. As Sahara approaches hers, Dyam comes storming over. He pushes some technicians aside as he gazes angrily at Sahara, who has trouble opening her door for some reason. Death, torture and pain fill his mind as he knocks over a cart that didn't even bothered his path. Sahara hears and sees this and becomes frightened of the threatening Dyam coming at her. The doorknob opens but the door itself is stuck. The stomping and squeaking from his leather boots (Starfox Assault style) are heard close as the last time she looks, he is only five meters away from her and the distance becomes smaller.

*Sahara isn't Krystal. Right in her face! *makes a fist* LITERALLY!*

Relief strikes Sahara as the door finally opens, but it's very short-lived; Dyam's paw grabs a tight hold of her left shoulder and turns her towards him. She tries to scream, but she starts to squeak soft. She feels like she just swallowed her tongue, for she can't speak or yell for help as Dyam's eyes scream 'murder'. She closes her eyes, retreats her face slightly, in anticipation to swallow up anything Dyam will throw at her...

Will Dyam do what he intended to do? Punch Sahara to bits? What will this all mean? Cliffhangers...

With the exception of the introduction of Razorblade88's OC Chase Harris, this is everything my so-called 'old script' has. For those who don't know, between Part 1 and Part 2 of Resurrection on was on vacaction in Turkey, with only a pencil, my imagination and a noteblock. I didn't finish it... yet. This cliffhanger is going to linger around for a duration longer then you are usually used to. I'm taking a small stop of everything. EVERYTHING! I already have ideas, don't worry. G-Zero isn't death, just on ice for the moment. Stay tuned with** The Phantomfoxx Updates!**  


Phantomfoxx out!


	10. After 5 years

We left off at the cliffhanger that has been lingering for about a week or so. Dyam has had enough of Sahara and Fox trying to rise up against him. Because Fox claims that Sahara is Krystal, he is going to say she isn't... in the face... with a fist. Read how this ends...

**Chapter 10: After 5 years...**

It's water versus fire, as with a vile look coming from every bit of his burning eyes, Sahara can feel the pain Fox must have felt. The fear... of even more pain and fear coming his way. Seeing the inner obliteration of his soul, she turns her head away slightly and exhales for the last time. She could swear that air around her cooled to at least -5 degrees Celsius as she can see her last breath exit her mouth and vaporize in the air before closing her eyes, ready to swallow whatever Dyam is throwing at her.

Full conscious returns when a shock runs through her body with the speed of light. Something pops inside her or rather explodes. The water and firestorm have met: As she opens her eyes, she doesn't see Dyam's face anymore, instead the back of his head very close. She indeed **swallowed** something: she is currently making out with Fox as she feels that two paws have placed themselves on her cheeks and are not planning to let go for a long time.

_'No matter what she would say... no matter would she would mutter, think or do... I would kiss her. Till the very end of days I would I had to. My queen of Lylat...' _

Tears of fear and sorrow turn into joy and love within a snap of the fingers. The air around her warms up in a split-second. They let each other's mouth go and hug each other, placing their heads on each respective right shoulders.

'I love you Fox...' mutters Krystal as she hugs him tighter. Fox doesn't mind; he has Krystal back and Dyam is currently nowhere to be found. Also Fox, can't keep it dry as his eyes start to sparkle. They both look up from each other's shoulders. Krystal sees Ryan, standing there on the other side of the hallway. He's stuck in mid-sprint, holding a baton. Completely dressed up in his SWAT outfit, helmet included, he was probably warned because of all the commotion. Reacting quick as he was already dressed up for 90%, he just had to strap his body armor and put on his helmet. He snaps out of his frozen state, drops the baton and scratches the back of his head in shame. He takes a deep breath, decides to play it cool and turns around. He greets Krystal on last time before turning around the corner.  
Fox sees Falcon's face in front of him. He winks at Fox as a sign of approval, but above all: JACKPOT! Both friends disappear when Krystal and Fox look each other right in the eyes. Everything is turned off by everyone. Except for their hearts, screaming out to each other in a language even I can't understand nor comprehend.

'I love you too... Krystal.' states Fox. 'More than anything.'

The both of them smile, tear stained. She tries to speak, but her mouth his shut by Fox's index finger as it touches her lips.

'You say it best... when you say nothing at all.' states Fox. 'The truth in your eyes... it says enough.' Krystal decides to take the words and take advantage of the situation before Dyam kicks in again.

*_When you say nothing at all by Ronan Keating*_

The two kiss again. Like magnets, they stick together. Water and fire didn't collide, but formed a swirl in each other's arms. Together... after 5 years.

Very short chapter... I know. However, the end of the cliffhanger that lingered for a mere week, has become a happy end. However, what's next? Will Krystal continue using her cover as Sahara to completely eliminate Dyam? Rye's role is still open as well and Starwolf remains at large. Several more threats are coming along the way. The new racers that Dyam chose? Chapter 11: What happens backstage...


	11. What happens backstage, stays backstage

Sorry for the inconvenience. Saw some mistakes and had to re-upload it because of that.

All is right between Fox and Krystal. However, Dyam is still the dark passenger roaming within Fox. And the G-Zero competition goes is still going on as well. What is Krystal gonna do?

**Chapter 11: What happens backstage, stays backstage**

*Intercom*

_All selected racers, attention all selected racers. First of all, welcome to the G-Zero Grand Prix on Papetoon. You lucky 7 were chosen by the Fallen One known as Dyam. Since he withdrew himself into his own room to mentally prepare himself, I highly suggest that the remaining racers check out the new lounge room. End of message._

*Intercom*

Sahara shrugs as she puts her contacts back in. She's standing in front of Dyam's door. When Fox started to feel that Dyam was kicking in again, they walked together to his room. She stares at it for a few moments before following the signs to the lounge room. When she enters, she sees a very ambient room. A fluffy black carpet decorated with very thin horizontal white stripes. The room itself is very dark, with the lightening around being to underline the scenery and atmosphere. In the middle, there is a big glass table, half surrounded by a black leather sofa. On the far right of the room, there is a mini-bar and a small rolling buffet. It underlines the atmosphere even more. She's actually pretty thirsty. She walks over to the mini-bar but doesn't have an appetite for alcohol. Luckily, a large bottle of water is stored below in the mini-bar. She pours a glass full and gulps it down in one go. She places the glass on a free spot on the mini-bar and thinks out everything that happened.

'I needed that glass. *sigh* Fox and I... finally together. Panther? Who's that? Haha... but still. Dyam remains at large. I'm not sure if Dyam is Fox's passenger or the other way around. Either way, I have met Fox and made up with him. The only thing now... is to eradicate Dyam!' she whispers to herself as she pours another glass of water.

'HEY!' is suddenly heard behind her. His voice sounds like a midget on cocaine, but pitched up by a bit. Like listening to nightcore. Also very stereotype Asian toned. 'If you really need to eradicate someone... I might be able to hook you up.' proposes the voice. She looks around her and sees the Asian version of Nero as a wolverine from The Matrix. Dressed in the same jacket, wearing the same sunglasses, the only difference is his black spiked and slightly greased up hair, his accent of course and the fact that he's wearing an iron gauntlet as an arm prosthesis. Some very impressive artwork is engraved all over it. Sahara is startled by his sudden presence, sitting on the left side of the sofa.

'Scared? You shouldn't be.' states the man.

'*retaken her breath* You scared be there though. *grabs the glass of water and heads back to the sofa*'

As she sits down, the Asian man sits a little closer to Sahara. 'And what's your name sweetheart?'

'My name is Sahara.'

'I should have known. Such a beautiful name is only preserved for cutey's like you.' he flirts.

*Great... another flirt. And a very hopeless one too. Alright... Sahara makes another comeback*

'Puh... *takes a swig from her glass* that's the best you can come up with?' ridicules Sahara. 'I've heard better in an insult.'

'*awkward laughter* Yeah... well. I like you! You're fierce and playing hard to catch... I like that!'

*Wow... I didn't even need to friendzone him. He did it by himself.* thinks Sahara actually impressed. It keeps her attention in the conversation.

'I'm Ché (Chay).' introduces Ché. 'Also known as Clubber, but that's just a name I give myself.'

Her attention is hauled to his gauntlet. Its style is that of a Almain rivet worn by Emperor Maximilian in 1514. However, the front plate isn't completely flat but actually looks like fingers. Ché notices this.

'Ah... you like it?'

Sahara nods a bit. 'How does that work? And why just a gauntlet?'

'The gauntlet is just awesome. A normal arm? *waves it off* Naaaah! Too mainstream. You are new to G-Zero, so you probably don't know anything about being an attention whore.'

*Attention whore!? Did he that Chinese asshole seriously say 'whore'!? Geh... he has balls. I'll give him that much.*

'How it works?' continues Ché without even looking at Sahara. 'See this? *points at the ribs on top of the fingers as he brings it closer for Sahara. As soon as she nods, he withdraws them very fast so Sahara didn't get a very good look at it. This annoys Sahara.* These, are mechanical nerve receptors. They are hardwired to the end of my natural nervous system. It's like having a normal hand, with the exception being that it's made of iron.'

*And my attention is gone! *sigh* Your typical hopeless womanizer. Nerdy talk ain't gonna help when you're already ruined it.* thinks Sahara while Ché continues to brag about his gauntlet.

'You want to know how I got this eh? *points at her face* Aaaah... I can see it in your eyes. The urge to know it. Well, it happened a few years ago. It was night on the docks of Hong-Kong. Only construction lights were there to light the way...' jabbers Ché away. Sahara takes another but deeper sigh as she is bored out of her mind.

*Jeesh! Is this guy ever gonna stop!? The harbor scene from the modern Batman movies... I thought listening to Dyam's cocky talk about himself was causing my ears to bleed. It just not enough to cut them off. But this guy... MY GOD! Shut the hell up!*

As if someone heard her thought, a fairly large shadow overhauls the chattering Ché without him realizing it. Because the figure behind is at least 1000 times more interesting than whatever comes out of Ché's mouth, she looks up. Suddenly, a very suntanned chubby paw with a lot of gold and diamond rings, cramped around the fat fingers, is stomped on Ché's right shoulder. It shakes him and makes him stop his bragging. That is the moment Ché realizes that the shadow and the paw belong to Big Daddy, as he walks around the sofa and stands before the glass table.

'Can't you see your annoying her with your bullshit Ché?' asks Big Daddy in a heavy but very sweet sounding voice. Sahara didn't actually expect any kind of voice, but certainly not one like this. 'You're still as annoying as you were when you were little.' states Big Daddy as he turns to Sahara. 'I'm sorry if that idiot bored you.' he apologizes.

Ché is the one to take a sigh and bows his head in shame. '*points at him* Sahara... this is Big Daddy. Big Daddy... *points at her* Sahara.'

Big Daddy looks like a very tall and fat brown bear, but he's completely naked. He has no fur. Instead, his bleak skin has been suntanned. He is bold and he has a double chin. He's on big honk of body fat but at least he can stand up right. He wears a white tank top with very thick, army green-colored fabric suspenders over it. On the back, it's woven to from an Y-shaped end on his back. The suspenders hold several sacks closing off by a flap with a snap fastener.

'Well, well.' says Big Daddy. 'So you're that famous girl from the videos huh? You're all over YouTube. 'That I didn't recognize you.'

Suddenly, Ché lifts up his head and looks very angry at Big Daddy. 'Did you had to ruin my changes!?'

Big Daddy, unimpressed, looks at Sahara who shakes her head while taking another swig from her glass. He turns to Ché again. 'Sure... you had a 'chance'.' he ridicules.

'You aren't naturally that tanned, are you?' notices Sahara as she sees that his skin shines in the light.

'Whahahaha!' roars Big Daddy. 'Indeed I'am not Sahara. Haha. I have no fur! However, I still want to look good with the girls... if you know what I mean desert beauty.' he flirts jokingly, winking at her. It makes her giggle but upsets Ché.

'Oh, of course! The pig gets all the ladies and I bite the dust! Is that it!?'

'Yes. Yes it is.' confirms Sahara very blunt, therefore silencing Ché as he pulls himself out of the conversation. She takes the last swig from her glass.

'Anyway... I'm completely suntanned indeed.' confirms Big Daddy.

'Oh yeah.' joins Ché out of nowhere. 'I already thought: Why does it smell like BBQ in here? *getting the taste* Yeah... hey. *turns to Sahara* I wonder how long it would have taken for him to become cooked-through.' insults Ché. His goal of pissing off Big Daddy succeeded as he's cooking with rage.

'Whahahahaaaa! I knew it! *stands up and drums on his belly* How's the fire inside doing?' he continues before looking at the furious expression on Big Daddy's face. His smile shrinks by a lot before he resettles his sunglasses, reflecting in the light; creating a shiny bar around the sides and puts his right paw in his pocket. He turns around. He lowers his glasses a little, looking at Sahara. He snaps his fingers and puts the other one in his pocket to before walking back to the couch. With the saying 'Cool guys walk away from explosions' (triggered by the snap of his fingers) in his head, he sits down on the couch and behaves very relaxed. He's still focused on Sahara, not paying the littlest of attention to him. In the meantime, Big Daddy has calmed down a little.

'Grrr... *deep breath* You're not worth it to even look upon my fist. If you really want to die, then please... continue. But I don't think you want to squashed between my rolls of roast beef Korean dickhead.' threatens Big Daddy as he grabs his biggest roll of fat and lets it slab against his main body. 'I'm getting a cognac. I'm getting thirsty from dealing with numbskulls. Anything for you Sahara?' he offers nicely.

'No thanks.' declines Sahara.

'Your choice.' ends Big Daddy as he walks towards the mini-bar. With Big Daddy now gone, Ché sees his chance again.

'Hey Sahara. Don't worry about the fat idiot.'

'Fuck off discount Matrix freak!' calls Sahara out to Ché, who immediately backs out.

As Big Daddy turns away from the mini-bar holding a full glass his right paw, his attention is hauled to his left where a sweet, female voice calls for him.

'I'll be damned! Mawile! It's great to see you!' greets Big Daddy happy.

'I'm also glad to see you Daddy. *looks at Sahara* Hey. I didn't know that Dyam chose another girl?'

'It seems so.' replies Sahara.

'Great. More girl-power. Just what this competition needs, am I right?'

She at least got Ché's attention. 'Hey beauty! Why don't you step into the light and joins us?' invites Ché as he lifts his eyebrows rapidly.

'Okay. But don't be scared.' warns Mawile as she steps out of the darkness of the hallway and into the light of the room. Ché is horrified to see what Mawile actually looks like and can understand the name she has been given.

'HOLY FUCK!' screams Ché as he crawls away in far left side of the sofa. Sahara doesn't look frightened, but more interested in how. She is about the same height as Sahara, maybe a little smaller. Mawile looks like a beautiful, half-naked and red colored on the left side (seen from the sofa) but her right side looks awfully hideous. Complete devastation of Aparoid infection as engulfed most of the right side. Only one small part of her right shoulder and right foot remains clean. Her right arm looks like a giant purple claw, build up layer for layer of Aparoid infected substances. It's as hard a diamond, except it's missing a weak point. From her right scapula (dorsal side), three thick roots sprout out and come together into a big Venus flytrap head. Her tail turned into a long, rugged, metallic colored dragon tail. The spiked though fairly slim tail ends with a sting and telson of an Indian red scorpion. The sting itself is shaped as a harpoon. The telson ends into the rattle segment of a tiger rattler. When she opens her mouth to say something, Sahara can clearly see a snake-like tongue. Her face is clean however.

'You're not a GIRL!' states Ché frightened. 'You're a contraption! An Aparoid' bites Ché.

Mawile doesn't listen as Big Daddy hugs 'the contraption' while she smiles. 'How have you been Roxanne?' asks Big Daddy.

'*giggle* I've been good Daddy. And you?' she says sweet.

'I couldn't be better. *lifts her up* It's absolutely great to see you.'

Ché is watching at the two, like father and daughter. However, he doesn't see it like that. More like a fat guy and 'the contraption' playing Big Daddy from BioShock with the Little Sister. Mawile curves her tail around Big Daddy and starts to purr. He's astonished that Sahara can remain so cool under this situation and even smile at Mawile.

'What!?' shouts Ché. 'Am I the only one disgusted by this!? I mean... I mean look at her... uh... IT! It's... it's... *can't find the right words* nevermind!'

'Are you having trouble excepting someone who just looks a little different?' questions Sahara while not looking at Ché at all.

'Wut? No... it's not that. It's just... doesn't even look steadily presentable! She has a meters long tail with a giant harpoon at the end, she has claw buildup of layers of dead skin and Aparoid mess... *stuttering* stuff... thing... and a giant mouth is growing out of her shoulder!' argues Ché.

'At least you called me 'she'.' states Mawile as she is dragged towards the sofa and gradually placed next to Sahara. The two smile at each other and are quite comfortable next to each other. Big Daddy goes through the thinnest way to the sofa: between the glass table on the right and Ché sitting on the sofa on the left. This forces Ché to withdraw his legs and put them on the couch. He growls at Big Daddy as he comfortably hops into the corner of the couch in between Ché and Sahara. A slight earthquake is felt, making everyone laugh except for Ché of course. The situation comes cozier by the minute. Jokes and interesting topics take over the tension and even Ché feels more accepted as he joins with some foul-mouthed though funny one-liners. He off all people.

'And how do you know each other?' wonders Sahara. 'Because you *points at Big Daddy* and you *points at Ché* know each other from childhood. And you *points at Mawile* are pretty close with Big Daddy. What's up with that?'

'Well...' explains Big Daddy as he sits upright. '...Ché and I grew up together. When he was 7, his parents moved to Katina. He joined the army, lost his arm in a freak accident right before Andross started the Lylat War and was off the map for a long time. Until I saw him here again. *sigh followed by a laugh* Still as annoying as ever.' states Big Daddy as he gulps his glass of cognac down in one go.

'Roxanne and I... or better yet Mawile and I. *slightly awkward* That's up to her to tell.' says Big Daddy as he gives the word to Mawile.

'Did I push the wrong button?'

'No Sahara. Don't be afraid of that.' assures Big Daddy.

'Yeah... it's emotional but I'm okay with it.' says Mawile with a small smile on her face.

'Have at you then!' states Ché very eager to know more. He's starting to see something more underneath that hideous Aparoid contraption.

'You know...' explains Mawile. '...as Big Daddy already said; my real name is Roxanne Hollister. I come from the beautiful planet of Feoria. A planet known for its industries. Still, the air was very clean and the spring was longest of all seasons. It was beautiful: pink blossoms everywhere. It attributed perfectly to the planet. However, our planet was devastated when the Aparoid Queen made her nest in our planet's core. Soon, everyone was eradicated, turned into Aparoids or went into hiding. I went into hiding. When Starfox finally took care of Aparoid City, we thought we were safe. We came out cheering, flashing with lights. Hoping that they would see us. But when the shield came back, they had detected us. All of us. We were taken prisoner. We were lined up, forced to watch how everyone was turned into an Aparoid by the use of an odd machine. It used purple lasers and electric shocks to transform them with the most amount of pain. I was last. The pain was horrible, but short lived. I fainted. I opened my eyes to say that every Aparoid was turned into a smoldering heap of ash. I was happy... but I saw what had become of me.'

'Wow... damn.' says Ché awkward. 'I... I'm sorry of judging you back there... *Shit!*' apologizes Ché.

'It's okay.'

'And how did you meet Big Daddy then?' asks Sahara.

'I fled the planet using an empty Aparoid vessel. An infected fighter plane. I flew away before it exploded into bits and pieces. I don't remember much from that point on. Only that I was getting spit at, shouted and even beaten on the streets. The next thing I knew, I was lying in the gutter of a suburb street, crying myself to sleep while it was pouring. *deep breath* And that is when Big Daddy found me.'

'She was only 15 when I found her.' says Big Daddy. 'Poor girl she was.'

'He carried me away, just like he did just now. Under his umbrella and in his arms... I felt love for the very first time since I was born in the Aparoid devastation. He took me in his home and let me live in the basement.'

Ché, drinking, spits out everything when he hears that. 'Say what!? In a basement!?'

'Don't overreact Ché. Let the lady finish her story.'

'It's not what you think Ché. Big Daddy lived pretty small and the basement was the biggest of all rooms in the whole house. It looked a whole lot cleaner than the gutter. For a few months, I lived in pure darkness. With only the basement light. We played games together and I found a way to express myself. The infection affected my vocal cords, making it very hard to speak at times. I found out that I had a talent for playing the violin. In the dramatic and beautiful sounds, I found my twist. After four years, I set my first step into the real world. Therefore, I see Big Daddy as my real daddy.'

'I'm glad you found your happiness in this world Mawile.' says Sahara. 'I really do.'

'Why thank you Sahara. And how about you eh? *tabs her shoulder with her elbow* Any happiness in your life hm?'

Now everybody is looking at Sahara.

'Well... there is this guy...'

'Yes?' continues Mawile.

'He's cool, neutral and always calculated. But underneath that, a brilliant hero and a very sensitive man.'

'Sounds very suitable for you.' states Mawile.

'And who is it?' wonders Ché while everyone has their attention hauled to the door opening. 'Who?'

'I seriously hope that that isn't him...' hopes Mawile as she points at Chase, standing in the doorway. He's wearing his racing outfit already. Wearing a pair of dark sunglasses, his red and black racing suit, his NASCAR gloves (red, black, and white) and with matching boots.

'Why? What's wrong with looking different Freakshow?' bites Chase.

'Laaaaame!' ridicules Ché. 'Even I can come up with better insults than that.

'Shut up Gauntlet. I'll be with you in minute. *turns to Sahara* Hey you!'

'What?' bites Sahara. Chase walks towards her and stands before the glass table.

'That spot you're sitting on... is mine. Get off.' demands Chase.

'What's yo problem asshole!?' stands Big Daddy up.

'I have no time for Fatso right now. Now... Sand(!), if you would be so kind as to get the fuck out of my spot... then everything will be fine.'

Sahara looks like she is thinking about it before crossing her legs and simply stating: 'No.'

This angers Chase as he stomps his hands on the table in front of him with a large blow, waking up everyone. 'I said... Get the FUCK... out of MY... spot.'

'No.' states Sahara again as she looks very unimpressed at Chase. He starts to rage on the table, flipping it away as his hair becomes messed up. Ché, Big Daddy and Mawile leave the room. Not because of what Chase did, but because of who has appeared behind him.

'Take care of him... Deadeye-style.' whispers Mawile to him.

'Haha... don't worry beautiful. I'll make sure that I introduce him to some Papetoonian police love.' grins the person as he now stands right behind Chase. It's Ryan, much to Sahara's delight. He is not wearing his helmet anymore but wears leather fingerless gloves with large, round button on the knuckles. He taps on Chase's right shoulder.

'Hey Mister Harris. *no reaction so he taps again* Hey Mister Harris... we need to have a word. *no reaction which pisses Ryan off so he taps even harder* Hey dickbrain! Papetoon Planetary Police Department, Second Lieutenant Ryan Steller *shows badge* speaking to you. *Chase turns his head to face Ryan* Great... contact.' ridicules Ryan. 'Listen... this is what you are gonna do. You're gonna apologize to her, *grabs his cuffs and baton* or you and I are gonna have some fun times.' assures Ryan with a smirk.

'Listen small time cop. I do whatever I please, if you don't like it too damn bad' states Chase.

'And that is your excuse fir calling her Sand!?' shouts Ryan. Sahara raises from the sofa and stands next to Ryan. 'Don't worry Ryan. It's probably what he has up his vagina.' burns Sahara.

'WHAT THE FUCK DID YA' JUST SAY TO ME!?' screams Chase overcooked. 'Y'ALL THINK I AM GONNA TAKE THAT SHIT? LYIN' DOWN? WELL I AIN'T GONNA STAND FOR THAT SHIT! SEE YOU ON THE TRACK TOMORROW! YOU BEST HOPE THAT YOU AREN'T NEXT TO ME IN THE TRACK! *storms off*'

'Geh... off to clean out his vagina. Haha *turns to Sahara* a good one Shara.'

'Well thank you Ryan. You think he's gonna make his threat true?'

'No clue.' shrugs Ryan. He walks away, just able to hear: 'AND BY THE WAY, I HAVE A DICK YOU DUMB BITCH.' shouts Chase after.

'The fact that you even had to mention in that in that ridiculous accent of yours is *makes scissor move with her index/middle finger* the sound of that vasectomy you took. Next time, pick a vagina that isn't contaminated with sand and maybe a soul helps.' winks Sahara.

Without any doubt, he turns around and grabs an AR-15 Bushmaster rifle from his back. Suggested that it was decorative and made off plastic, it was passable as decoration to his look as a driver. He shoves a fresh magazine in the rifle and aims for Sahara.

'Problem, sweetheart?'

'*looks frightened at first but sees Ryan appear behind him* Nope, not anymore sugar tits! Met Bodyguard already?' points Sahara. Chase turns around to see Ryan grin at him as he grabs the rifle and slams Chase's face with the stock. The weapon falls on the ground as Chase tries to remain focused after the blow.

'Geh... *wipes some blood away from his mouth* I don't know if you know. But I have a black belt in Krav Maga, Judo, Shoot Wrestling, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu Jitstu. So you better watch yourself asshole!' warns Chase.

'*provokes with his paw* Bring it on, sucker!'

Chase charges at him with his right fist forward in an act of rage, without any control. Ryan sees this and reaches out to grab his left arm. He twists it, pulls him down, lets his left paw go of the arm and punches Chase in the face.

'Had training in the Navy SEAL's. Don't fight a veteran with a vengeance.' states Ryan as he walks away.

Chase flips on his back but is raises back up almost instantly, surprising Ryan completely as he gets a boot to the face. He stumbles back, holding his paw on his bleeding face as Chase isn't done yet. He charges Ryan in the back, grabs him, vaults him over himself and slams Ryan on the floor behind him, head first.

*OUMPF! Fuck... *gasp* AAARGH! Remain in control Ryan. It's Sahara you're protecting! *glares at Chase* And some asshole you're fighting! Time to end this! DEADEYE-STYLE!*

Instead of standing up, he does a spin kick on the ground. Chase sees this coming and jumps over it. Using the momentum he gained from the spin kick, he raises up in a twist. Chase has had enough as he grates his teeth.

*The weak spot is the head. I've already fucked it up... now time to finish it!* he thinks as he performs something quite unlikely: A full roundhouse kick using his left foot instead of the usual right. Seeing the full turn, Ryan knows what to do.

*Taste something I invented myself to punish assholes like you. My thanks go out to my nickname Deadeye and to a writer. He puts you on the wrong leg and mows that away to. Watch and learn!*

Ryan turns around to show Chase his back, kneels down on the ground, his right knee only touching the ground. He bows his head, making the kick miss. He rises his right shoulder a little and grabs a hold of Chase's leg, stopping the whole action. He continues with a fierce ram into the left knee with his elbow, bending the knee joint in the wrong direction. The finish comes when he raises his arm up again and punches Chase's balls. As he squeals, he's completely vulnerable. With his un-kneeled leg, he mows away the weakened standing leg as he turns to his left. Therefore throwing Chase back first on the ground before him. He lets go off his leg, wipes some sweat away from his forehead and stands up again.

'THAT! *gasp* Was for fucking with the wrong girl. *turns to Sahara* Bodyguard? You kidding me?'

'No... you don't like it?'

'*looks at the knocked down Chase* Nah... it's better than whatever he's bragging about. *wraps his arm around Sahara* What now?'

'Actually...' points Sahara out. 'There is something you can do for me.'

'What would that be?'

'THIS AIN'T OVER!' coughs Chase out of nowhere. 'SEE YA ON THE TRACK!' he states he slowly raises to see that Ryan is walking off with Sahara. 'Assholes...' he growls as he feels if his teeth are all still in. He exits the Colosseum and enters the paved square on the 'city part' (east) on the right of the Colosseum. On the opposite side, there is the sea. To the north the savanna area and the south is the grass fields. He's in a bad mood. Getting his ass handed to him by just some random cop. He reflects the whole fight.

*That guy was just doing something. No style whatsoever! All improvised! SEAL training my ass!* he thinks in himself when he suddenly bumps up against a drunk fan.

'HEY Hurricane! *Hic* _You... y-you are Hurri *burp* cane right? I-i... I like you... *hic* I- i- I love you..._'

'Get the fuck out of my way!' shouts Chase as he opens can of whoop ass on the drunken fan. He leaves the fan behind, bruised up and stricken down. With more drunken slurs, he stumbles away to get the police while Chase walks away from the square, into an alleyway.

'Hey! Who are you!?' shouts Chase at an unknown figure standing before him in the alley. He's is blocking the way. The scent of fear hangs in the air when it suddenly seems a whole lot darker all of the sudden. This begins to thunder in the distance while dark clouds cluster above the alley. The feeling he gets from the mysterious person says: 'Don't fuck with me. Or else...'

'What you did back there... wasn't very nice.' says a very monotone, hollow voice. 'Har har... time for the new shit...'

Not actually backstage, but no witnesses. The situation is very friendly, except for Chase (Hurricane). His actions have proven to be not very effective with the rest of the racers. You thought Ché was bad? Lesson learned: NEVER fuck with the wrong girl.


	12. Forgotten times, recently or long ago

Already checked out The Phantomfoxx Updates? No? Than I'm not gonna explain it when it's online already.

Most racers are introduced. Sahara, Dyam, Ché, Big Daddy, Mawile and Chase. Counting up to a miserable 6 when 8 are actually needed. What happened to the other two? Who is the dark person in the alley?

**Chapter 12: Forgotten times... recently/long ago**

'What you did back there... wasn't very nice.' says a very monotone, hollow voice. 'Har har... time for the new shit...'

Chase is just standing there, not sure what he's supposed to feel. He's not in the mood for weirdo's at the moment, but something about this guy is very interesting. He mans up and talks back with a nonchalant body language.

'Alright. Yes... maybe it wasn't the nicest thing but I'm not in the mood for drunken talk.' explains Chase. 'Who are you anyway? And why stand in this alley?'

As the thunder strikes, it lights up the person. It is revealed that it is a dark black furred wolf-jackal hybrid. His back is similar to that of a black-backed jackal while the rest of his body is fully wolf-like. He's carrying a large, rectangular bag. It is starting to pour as the wolf turns his head a little towards Chase, revealing his poison green eye. The pupils narrow when looking upon Chase as the wolf turns around completely.

*Great... another misfit?* mocks Chase as he sees the wolf. *POV from Chase* The left side of his face is largely burned off and while the unburned parts are covered in scars. The right side of his face is clean, however his right eye is a mess. It's a metal plate, bend in such a way that it moves along with the face. Four 'eyes' in thin protruding tubes in a square formation shine bright red. They surround a blade, which is stuck inside his hidden eye. It shines in another thunderbolt stricken. Aside from his face, there isn't anything mutated or altered. He's wearing a necklace made from a string with a gray spike attached to it. An open, black leather biker-jacket with dark blue colored shoulder pads is what he's is wearing. Complete with a fitting pants and boots to boot. (get it?)

'My name is Terminator... but you can call me Umph!' proposes Terminator.

'Umph? Like in what?'

'In this!' grins Terminator as he throws a hefty low punch in Chase's stomach. *UMPH!* Chase cringes on the ground while Terminator walks beside him. Adding to the surprise, comes a dirty left hook right on the sternum, making breathing a lot harder. He passes him by and stands behind him. With a rotten sense of finishing, Terminator drops himself on the ground, only to catch himself with his paws on the ground and horse-kick Chase in the back of the head. As Chase falls face down into a small puddle of water in front of him, Terminator does a forward somersault and stands upright again. He turns towards Chase, knocked down again. He flips Chase over to face him. He squats beside him.

'So... you must be Hurricane. I saw you on TV. From what I saw and heard, you got your ass kicked by a certain person. Ryan... aren't I right? Tell me I'am!.' demands Terminator.

Chase can barely open his eyes, that's how whacked he feels. Every breath he takes hurts and swallowing is near impossible. Beaten twice in a fraction of a second. As he finally manages to open his eyes, he sees that Terminator isn't there anymore. He looks up, seeing the square from his laying position. He just disappeared.

*And where did he go? *receives answer* Thank you sir. *boots up the communications* Attention all units, attention all units. Possible location of the guy matching the description the drunk guy gave us. Location is Celdon Alley.* is heard from outside the alley as beams of several flashlights are seen on the paved ground of the square. With drooping eyes, he looks at the wall to his right, seeing a blue sign. In white letters is written: *Celdon Alley*.

*Oh shit.* complains Chase. *They really trusted that drunk guy? You gotta be kidding me.* thinks Chase before he's blinded when one of the flashlights shines its light upon his eyes.

'There he is! *radio* We got him! Attention everyone, we have him. Repeat we have him.' is the last thing he hears before he loses consciousness because of exhaustion.

*He's knocked out. What now?*

*Just bring him downtown for interrogation.*

*Hey... what's this? *finds ID* Wow. We got ourselves a diplomat. *reads it out loud* Diplomatic immunity. GAH! My ass with that! Let's show the fellow some Papetoonian police love likes Ryan always says.*

Even though Chase is far from able to react, something triggers in him when he hears 'Ryan'.

*Back inside the stadium lounge room*

As Sahara and Ryan try to walk out, they see Ché, Mawile and Big Daddy just enter through the same doorway they wanted to leave. Everyone seems to be in a great mood now that Chase is out of the picture.

'So... you showed them who's boss eh Ryan?' comments Mawile soft.

'I sure as hell did. *lets his arm go from Sahara* I showed that jackass who's boss in here.' brags Ryan. Sahara gives him a feisty elbow in his side. 'OW! Hey... why?'

'You shouldn't brag about a fight you almost lost facing a woman Ryan.' explains Sahara. 'That's rude.'

Mawile shrugs and makes a fanged smile. '*inarticulately giggling* I don't really mind that...' gestures Mawile flirty as she walks away towards the sofa again. Ryan watches her go, just like he did with Sahara. He sees Ché walking sideways like a crab, slightly cringed. He has his fist placed against his mouth while he shakes violently with his right paw shouting:

'OOOOOOH! Ryan has her hooked! He got her hooked!' adds Ché before suddenly snapping out of it and turning his back on Ryan. He flips up his collar flap and resettles his sunglasses again.

'Alrighty then!' he quotes as he walks towards the mini-bar. Big Daddy approves with a nod as he steps away from the doorway, allowing Ryan and Sahara a clear path. With the room behind them, they head towards Sahara's garage.

'What was that?' wonders Sahara, stopping Ryan.

'Uh.. what was what?'

'You know what I mean lady-killer. Mawile and you?'

'What the...!? Mawile and I!? No way. I mean... yeah she is great person but nah... I don't think it's gonna work out.' states Ryan slightly disappointed though. He continues to walk as Sahara follows him. She is eager to hear more.

'You don't think it's gonna work out? You just met her!' says Sahara.

'*stops in his tracks* You want to know everything... don't you? Aha... oh well. I met her when I was a detective for a very short while before coming a Second Lieutenant in the SWAT business. I received a call *ironic muttering on his police radio following the arrest of Chase which he doesn't hear* about some girl being locked in the basement of a house. It was my last call after I had to cope with a hostage situation involving a young girl went wrong. My fault... so I went to investigate. *starts to walk again* To at least do something right. The house looked like it could collapse any second. No registered owner but we see that an awful lot on Papetoon. If we have to check out everyone, than entire neighborhoods would become empty and the prisons overcrowded. Anyway, I knocked on the door a few times but no one opened. So I kicked it in, just like that. It woke up someone as he was yelling from upstairs. It was something like 'Roxanne' so I figured that she must be that girl.'

'So the investigation turned into a search and rescue mission.' figures Sahara.

'Yep. I drew my gun and saw a door that had been recently opened since it was wasn't closed. I also heard someone storming down the stairs. I figured that Roxanne was the girls name, that she was indeed kept in the basement and that she is not allowed to go out. I opened the door and ran down the stairs. That's when I found her, sitting in a dark corner. Finally, some young girl that I did save. She looked horrible yeah, but it's the inner that counts. I reached out to her with a friendly hand, but Big Daddy came storming down too. I held him at gunpoint before he was even halfway. She diminished herself into a small ball out of fear. I told her that she shouldn't be afraid, that Big Daddy wouldn't hurt her anymore. But she was more afraid of me than she could ever be of Big Daddy.'

'And after some explanation...'

'I took her and Big Daddy to the station. I took Mawile with me to my office. Sitting behind my desk, searching my shit in the mess of papers, she was shivering out of fear. Like she never saw a police station in all of her live. I made Big Daddy wait outside because what I was gonna say, wasn't very pleasant. Strict regulations say that she is no one. Not in the eyes of the government at least. Therefore, she would be send back from where she came from. She explained that Big Daddy cared for her for 3 years already and that she wanted to stay with him. What I was gonna say next, would ruin that. It was my last day as a detective anyway, so I arranged a court case. Against the rules but** F** that, right?'

'In which Big Daddy got the guardianship that allowed Mawile to stay with him.' concludes Sahara.

'Since then, Mawile and I see each other often. It's been a while since I moved to another city, however we stay in touch. You can sorta say that it has become a relationship you see often in those crime series. Cop with a sucky past saves a girl/woman with whom he becomes best friends with. No exception in this case.'

'Sure. 'Best Friends'. Haha... do you really think I didn't see the look in her eyes? You're blind for love, that's it. But I can see that it ain't gonna work out. She is a lot younger than you are.'

'Age is an issue? Says the chick who hooked Dyam.' comments Ryan.

'Oh yeah... *blushes*'

'Come on. You two were making out together while I was observing! He's about 30 and you are like 24! That's at least 6 years!'

'Yeah... uhm talking about Dyam. That's exactly the reason why I needed a favor.' says Sahara while still blushing.

Locked in a cell at the sheriff's office, there he is. Downtown was too crowded at the moment. Multifarious champion in events like NASCAR, Le Mans and many others. Chase Harris, is sitting on the floor of the only cell in the department. He sees an officer behind a desk, leaning back in his chair while juggling around with a yo-yo.

'Hey dumbfuck!' he shouts towards the officer. 'I have diplomatic immunity! You can't lock me up in here!'

'I'm afraid that is absolute nonsense!' shouts the officer back. 'You see, we have had countless cases in which turds like you just come over to our planet and wreak havoc with the same excuse. I have adapted a small regulation with the corps: the ability to flip off that immunity for an indefinite amount of time. In this period, the accused can be bailed out.' explains the officer as he returns to his yo-yo.

'*Stupid lazy Papetoonians! Everything is plain sailing for these idiots. Hmmm... since they are treating diplomatic immunity like Lethal Weapon 2, I think I'll refer to another classic line.* HEY! I have the right to make a phone call.' states Chase.

'Nope!' answers the officer blunt. 'No you don't. *sudden phone rings* Hello? Really? A high clearance call? *points at him* For that annoying prick? *sigh* Fine... I'll hand him over.' replies the officer as he walks towards Chase with an angry look on his face. 'It's for you.' ends the officer as he simply throws it in. Chase picks it up.

*Phone*

_Hello?_

_*answer*_

_Oh. It's you._

_*answer*_

_Of course I'm a little disappointed. I'm thinking high clearance call like in General Pepper or something. Not you._

_*answer*_

_I know that you are their replacements. And your name made into the households, I get it._

_*answer*_

_Other than I'm in fucking prison... meh, so far it's going pretty good._

_*answer*_

_No... I don't think G-Zero is still available for me. Some idiot took my spot, at least I think. I can't remember his name though._

_*answer*_

_I did have time for that! Yes, I had._

_*answer*_

_How? Dyam went to take a piss and I sneaked into his room. I placed it in the fridge. _

_*answer* _

_Sure as all hell it's gonna be a surprise. He'll be blown away by it! WhaHA!_

_*answer*_

_Sahara will get her payment to. Before I met her in the lounge room, I knew things were gonna get ugly between her and me. So I dumped it all in her secondary bed in her garage. Her Desert Storm was in storage, which was a shame. Otherwise I could have cut a few wires here and there._

_*answer*_

_The nanny cams are installed. You'll get your footage, take it easy. _

_*answer*_

_I know you and your girl want a cheap laugh. I can guarantee you that you'll get it. As long as I can recover it..._

_*answer*_

_If you don't bail me out, than who will huh!?_

*interruption by the officer who is on another phone*

'Hey Harris.' calls the officer. Chase is actually surprised to hear his real name instead of turd. 'You're free. *hangs up the phone* Someone bailed you out.'

*interruption by the officer*

_Did you just...?_

_*answer*_

_But if it wasn't you, than who was it then?_

_*answer*_

_Yeah... I'll find that out myself. I'll send it as fast as possible._

_*answer*_

_Yeah... you too. And good luck with your girl._

_*answer*_

_Sure. See ya Phantom._

*Phone*

The officer snatches the phone out of Chase's hands as he leads Chase out of his cell, still cuffed. He leads him towards one of the 'private rooms'. Chase reads the gold plated tag on the door.

'Private room?' he comments awkward. 'Is that what I think it is?'

'Whahaha!' roars the officer. 'Why else is it called 'private' you asshole? Oh... asshole. Whahaha *slaps his knee* Good one. WHAHAHAHAHAA! I don't know who is gonna pay you a visit, but I bet he's dressed in tight latex and carrying a whip for your sorry ass. 'Sorry ass'... grrrrrrraAAUUW! Damn I'm good today. *opens the door* Get in there!' commands the officer as he pushes him in there. He draws his service pistol from his holster and holds it ready in his left paw while the other unlocks the cuffs.

'I'll be outside... when you need me.' mocks the officer hazy as he closes the door behind him. Chase sits down on the king-sized, perfectly made up bed. The sheets feel like silk, almost a liquid. He looks towards the door, obviously closed. A thin wall makes it barely visible from his position. The furniture and the walls look very outdated. It traces back to the '50. **1950**!

*Looks ancient. It's frickin' **2019**! I've read an article about these sorts of rooms in an old magazine my grandma used to own. *deep sigh* Granny... it sucks that I never get to see her. Also my whole family and my wife... and now look at me! Bailed out of prison, diplomatic immunity is introverted for undefined amount of time and if that idiot at the door is right, I'm about to get raped. Perfect eh!*

His thoughts are shattered when the door opens with a large bang as the person opening it slams the door handle to pieces. He hears something he would wish he would never, ever have to hear; the slashing sound of a striking whip. The sound of the person's boots sounds very hollow and close by. He's looking around faster than ever, searching for something to protect himself with. As the sound enters his ears twice, almost at the same time, he knows that he's already standing in the room.

*FUCK! Not very strange, since the hallway leading to the door is shorter than Cockblock.* thinks Chase he looks upon a very familiar looking individual. Wearing a blue mechanical eye-patch, spiked shoulder pads, an open blue colored vest, pants held up by a belt closed off by a golden buckle where oddly enough two holsters are attached to it and V-shaped kneepads with a spike sticking out the middle. He's laughing in himself as he throws the whip towards the open door. Chase can hear the guard outside roaring as he grabs the whip. Wolf O'Donell, gives him a thumbs up before the guard closes the door again. He turns to Chase.

'Y-you are Wolf?' stutters Chase.

'*surprised* Yeah... who did you know? I can't remember mentioning my name.'

'*He can't know that I've played Starfox games on Earth. Starfox 64... Fichina, Bolse and finally Venom. His look very different though.* I guess you have a reputation.' comments Chase dry.

'Har har! Well... yeah.' figures Wolf. 'Why the hell not eh? We've saved this system from the Anglars so some recognition is at its place. But enough gibberish. *grabs a chair and sits down* Do you know why I've brought you here? Bailed you out in the first place?'

'If I gotta believe that asshole outside, I was thinking you were gonna rape my ass.'

'*chuckle* You shouldn't believe that blockhead. Anyway, do you remember talking to a guy on the phone, saying that you needed to get to Papetoon under cover of a diplomat?'

'Duh! That's why I'm here you fleabag.' insults Chase, treating Wolf as a dumb shit. '*sudden realization* Wait... how do you know?'

'I was the guy on the other side. I've promised you all. Your shit was already delivered.'

'It was you!? B-but why?'

'I wanted you to get to Papetoon under the cover of a diplomat. With your immunity, it would be a piece of cake. *slowly makes a fist for dramatic effect* To finally get rid off that filth!'

'What filth? Just explain! Don't be so fucking cryptic!'

'You would receive a message once you were there. For whatever reason, that message came in scrambled. Your goal was to be chosen for the G-Zero. In all the confusion, you did manage that. However, you didn't get the second part. In that suitcase you came with, there was a secret compartment. It contained a small knife. One who's blade would vaporize when coming in contact with any fluid. You were supposed to kill Dyam with that blade. With the blade vaporized, no evidence would lead to either of us. You could continue your career *brings up his entire bio on his wrist-pad* as racer here on Papetoon and we us Starwolf could finally enjoy live as it is without ruining our reputation.' explains Wolf.

Disbelief about everything shoots through his mind. His imagination shows the images of how it was supposed to go. He shakes his head, erasing those thoughts. He hops off the bed as he bravely states: 'I'm not doing it! NEVER!'

'You already accepted the money. You have no choice. By the way, it wasn't my idea in the first place. It was from a buddy of mine. But also, some manager.'

'I don't care! Eat shit and die" shouts Chase and spits in Wolf's face. Wolf nearly falls over but stands his ground. He wipes Chase's saliva away from his face as he growls at him, showing off a portion of his sharp teeth.

'Wrong choice showboy. *walks towards the door* Very wrong choice...' threatens Wolf as he knocks on the door three times. A response is heard; one knock from the guard outside. He grabs his keys and locks the door before wandering off into the night. Wolf grins demonic at Chase as he pulls out an unconventional looking blaster. It has two forward-pointed, hooked bayonets underneath his bulky looking barrel-end. In his right paw, he's still holding the bio as he brings it closer to his eyes.

'Here it says that you think that we Lylatians have no idea what bullets are.' he reads out loud. 'GAH! Complete and utter bullshit! We have largely replaced them with lasers, true. But we do have hybrids. *aims at Chase* And that's what this thing is loaded with. So... as a reaction to what you just said. The 'Eat shit and die' thingy... let me introduce you to: 'Eat lead and fly fucknugget!' shouts Wolf as he fires his blaster on the ground in front of Chase's feet. The bullet sparks into a small wildfire before exploding a split-second later. It sends Chase flying as he slams with his back against the wall.

'WHAHA! How about now huh? Stand up you jackass. Har har... I want you to dance for me.' he smirks as he aims the blaster at Chase again. Chase has had enough. If being beaten, thrown in cell and being locked up in a room with some psycho thinking he's all that isn't enough...

*Beat me once... shame on you. Beat me twice... shame on me. Beat me thrice? Hell no!* thinks Chase as he rises in an instant. He turns to the wooden nightstand next to him, lifts it up in the air and throws it towards Wolf, whose smirk shrinks.

'Shit...' he comments before his lights go out when it knocks him down on the ground. Chase snatches the blaster out of Wolf's open paw and blows the door to pieces. He throws the blaster back and runs off. Off to warn Dyam and retrieve the tapes.

*Back inside Sahara's room*

Her Desert Storm is indeed gone. Ryan moved it on her demand to make sure it would stay safe. If it wasn't for that... Her secondary bed is in the far right corner. It looks very clean for just a garage. Ryan takes a little walk around since he's new to Sahara's garage. He's very impressed.

'Looks like you got everything eh?'

'Yeah... I do. Can I talk to you about that favor?'

'Sure thing.'

'I want you to change the main wings on my Desert Storm.'

'Change them? Why? You don't like them?'

'It's actually a surprise for Dyam, you see.'

'Foxy love. *admiring expression* I only honor what can't be mine.'

'Don't be so melodramatic. Are you gonna do it?'

'Of course. What is the catch?'

'I need the wings to become more like the wing of a Cloud Runner. Or at least the ship. Do you know what it looks like?'

'Just a sec. *grabs a small book*'

'What's that?'

'Oh just a book. It contains a catalog of all the ships I own, have sold or gonna own. *flipping through the pages*' *Where is it? C... C... look for the letter C. Gotcha! The CloudRunner. A modified Arwing for the latest Starfox member Krystal. Dual lasers and agility like a boss!* '*closes the book* I know it. I'll have it done in like an hour or two. *gives Sahara a small note* This is the number of the storage where I'll be working on your Desert Storm. Be there at 18:00.'

'I will. Uh... could you maybe let any projectors and lights be? I need them for the surprise.'

He nods. 'Of course. *sees Sahara yawning* Tired?'

'Maybe. I think I'm gonna take nap. It has been a troubling and intense day... AAH!' screams Sahara as she lifts the sheets of her bed. Ryan runs towards her, very concerned at first. But he can't stop laughing as sees that Sahara's entire bed is filled with a thick layer of sand. A sign for ants is placed on top of it reading *SAND*.

Sahara holds the small sign in her right paw, growls and crushes it in anger while Ryan can't hold anything back. A sudden girly scream coming from next door snap Sahara out of her rage and Ryan out of his laughing. They open the door and see that Dyam's door is slightly open. Ryan carefully opens it and sees Dyam, holding his heart while breathing heavily. He points towards the open fridge, in which a fake, decapitated head is stored in. Seeing that Dyam has had more a of a beating than she had, Sahara starts to giggle too.

'WHO DID THIS!?' demands Dyam. You can clearly hear he's angry as all hell as he storms out of his room. Barely in the hallway, he almost bumps up against a freaky person.

'Oh... well hello there stranger *klang*. *bows* It's a pleasure to meet you *klang*.' says the person very calm, while showing a small smile.

'Did you put that head in there!?' shouts Dyam.

'Head *klang*? I have no idea where you are talking about *klang*.' he answers calm. Somehow, an aura surrounding him calms Dyam down too as Ryan and Sahara stand next to him and observe the person. A young, gray colored vulpine with the voice of Mister Rogers and with the peace and dress code of a Tibetan monk. He's even holding his paws in praying position. His face, is what hauls all attention. A circular saw is stuck in his head. His eyes look in all directions, going complete apeshit. They do it all separately, giving a somewhat uncanny feeling when looking at it.

'My name is Gyro. It is because... *klang*'

'Of your sawed head!?' interrupts Ryan. 'I mean damn dude! That must have hurt as all hell!' comments Ryan deterred. Sahara and Dyam can't believe their eyes either. 'And what's up with your voice?'

'Yes... *klang* The saw hurt, indeed *klang*. However, it didn't kill me or damage me *klang*. It went right through the small gap in between my cerebral hemispheres *klang*. One point of critic is that I always see small metal balls going crazy before my eyes *klang*. That's why I look in all directions *klang*. And that why my name is Gyro; I stay in one spot while everything around me spins out of control *klang*.'

'Like a gyro-lock.' figures Dyam after some thinking.

'And how about that metallic sound you make everything you end a sentence?' wonders Sahara.

'Another odd thing, don't you think *klang*? I have no idea, but you'll get used to it *klang*'

*writer interruption*

_Now that I've explained the metal *klang* noise, I'm not gonna write it down everytime he ends a sentence. Thanks for your understanding._

*writer interruption*

'And you're a racer too?' asks Dyam.

'You chose me. You should know.'

'Well... I've had my energy so I don't remember much though. *turns to Sahara as he wipes his mouth* It was disgusting.' he whispers in her ear before returning to his room.

'What was that?' wonders Ryan.

'*chuckle* It seems that an immense aura of doubt and confusion surrounds him young vixen.' claims Gyro turning to Sahara. 'And it has a lot to do with you. I think you should set the tone... before the other side that you admire says goodbye.'

'Okay... I guess.' answers Sahara confused. *How the...*

Gryo greets and is lead towards the lounge room by Ryan while Sahara stays behind. Ryan signals 6 o'clock before disappearing around the corner. Sahara decides to follow since Dyam shut the door. He doesn't sound very happy, so she leaves him alone for now. When she comes back into the lounge room, only Ryan is there.

'Hey.' notices Sahara. 'Where is Gyro?'

'Oh... him? Went to take piss I guess.' answers Ryan absent. 'Anyway... *knacks his fingers* time for some work on your Desert Storm.' states Ryan as he intends to walk away, only to be stopped by a monotone voice behind him.

'Already going Deadeye? Always in a hurry, aren't you? *walks into the light* Just like in the army.'

With a deep sigh, Ryan turns around to witness upon his old best friend: Termite.

'Who is it going... Ryan?' he smirks. 'It took hours to find you in this mess of a Colosseum.'

'T-termite? How the...?'

'IT'S TERMINATOR!' he states out loud. 'Your buddy Termite died on Katina, remember? Desert Rebels? *points at the eyepatch* Your KNIFE!?'

The memories are coming back to him. From his order to kill Termite to actually stabbing him in the eye. Ryan nearly collapses as Terminator just stares at him.

'Army?' says Sahara confused. 'Termite... Terminator? Desert Rebels!? Care to explain!?'

'You heard the lady Deadeye... speak up. Be a man for once.' mocks Terminator. '*sees Ryan having trouble* Such a long time ago eh? You can forget the past, but can the past forget you? No... it haunts. And now it's standing before you... as Hurricane's **replacement**!'

Forgotten times... either in the past or near present, it seems that everyone has experienced something. Mawile with her Aparoidedation, Dyam with his split-personality, Sahara as a disguise for Krystal, Gryo with the saw in his head, Ché with his gauntlet arm, Chase's practical jokes on Dyam and Sahara and now Ryan's past in the army. The past haunts...


	13. The curse of the past

I've made a change to Mawile, so don't get confused when she has a slightly different character description. I didn't describe that she had pallid hair, mostly covering her left eye.  


Last chapter we read that you can't escape the past. Either Dyam, Sahara or even Ryan... no one can. It was revealed that Ryan had an old feud against each other. Katina, Desert Rebels, the knife? Find it out.

**Chapter 13: The curse of the past**

The fierce, dry sunlight of the desert sun finds its way through the gaps in between the peeks of the mountain tops in the distance. It highlights the army camp of the Cornerian Army 6th infantry, 12th platoon. Resources except for water, food, weapons and ammunition are scarce, so the tents were the soldier sleep in, are tipi's. Some bigger than others, some more decent than others. Made up out of wooden poles and rags, they're not 100% safe and sound, but fit the situation well. Through one of the tipi's, the most fierce amount of sunlight breaks through the fibers of the tent. A small pair of glasses are laying on a small stand, next to an outfit and insignia, reflects into the sleeping Ryan's eyelids. Almost blinded, he wakes up with a start and plants his face right into the wet clothing suspended on a line tied between two of the poles, hanging there to dry. With a deep sigh and an inner grudge starting to brew, he rips off the piece of clothing from the line which reveals itself to be a pair of boxers from his best friend. He crumples it and throws it towards his pal's bed, but it's empty.

*Of course, that jackass is already outside. If I ever meet someone as a prankster as that guy, I'm gonna kick his ass.* he thinks as he grabs the suit, puts it on and pins the insignia up. He looks at the glasses and smirks.

*He likes jokes eh? *grabs the glasses* Let's see how he likes this one.*

Outside, everyone is already busy getting their stuff together. Armored trucks and tanks are getting refueled and resupplied as normal foot soldiers check their weapons for ammo and hygiene so it doesn't jam in the midst of battle. Ryan's pal is just outside of the tipi, sitting on empty wooden box. Holding his Saritch .308 bullpup battle rifle by the barrel, he stares with squeezed eyes into the sky; something he does often. He has that innocent look in his eyes, very friendly, almost childlike. He's kinda of a geek. Weak, scared in combat. However, as an expert in explosives, he is irreplaceable. Ryan grabs his pal's glasses from his pocket while the other hand puts a cigarette in his mouth. He gives the glasses to his pal, slightly startled as he needs to break from his 'trance'.

'Huh? Oh... thanks. *looks at the crushed glasses* You son of a... *sigh* Seriously?'

Ryan shrugs as he lights the cigarette. He takes a draft, blows out some smoke before saying: 'Maybe you shouldn't dry your boxers above my private facial area. Stick to making bombs, not jokes Termite.' states Ryan as he proudly starts parading around the camp, observing everyone doing their jobs.

'You're no fun.' comments Termite as he puts on what is left of his glasses. *Wow... Ryan is such a generous god. He destroyed the structure, but left the glasses intact for the most part.* thinks Termite as he follows Ryan.

'So eh... what is... *fighter planes fly low overhead as the soldiers around start to complain about the noise and nuisance* uh... next Ryan?' The two stop.

'*takes another draft and turns to Termite* No idea.' he says with a shrug. He points towards the clear blue sky ahead of them. A white dot is seen. 'See that? *Termite nods* That is the alert balloon. A giant balloon that will pop, unleashing a light-show of epic proportions. As soon as it pops, we move out.'

'You mean there are our guys out there!?' asks Termite somewhat disturbed. 'Why would you...?'

'Wow, wow. Easy there. I'm just the Platoon Leader here. Commander of this whole thing is Dawson, remember?'

'Oh yeah. Grr... I hate that eel.' growls Termite, remembering the last four months.

'*offers Termite a cigarette which he refuses* That bitch left you for him, left you in a dump and with huge debts forcing you to enroll in the Cornerian Army? Haha. Yeah, *chuckle* I remember that. *bumps him with his left shoulder* One positive thing: you met me eh? Geh heh.'

'Yeah. *looks at Ryan taking another draft from his cigarette* You should really consider stop smoking. It's bad for you.' advises Termite.

'WHAHAHAHA!' roars Ryan as he slaps Termite on his back, almost knocking off his glasses. He notices something in the distance but doesn't report it. '*takes another draft as he turns around* As soon as you stop sniffing glue. That glazed look in your eyes is noticeable for everyone.' replies Ryan as he throws away his cigarette.

'Hey!' calls Termite out. 'Aren't we supposed to see if that balloon is gonna pop?'

'No worry. Get into Rhino 2-6. We'll be leaving shortly.' smirks Ryan as a small shard of glass in the sand reflects the light show behind him.

*20 minutes later*

The camp is within the small valley in between the mountain range is something more than a small dot on the endless, flat horizon. Ryan looks at for the last time before turning to his squad. Setting on top of the roof on a halftrack, holding their rifles with one hand and the other holding on to the rails of the roof. Ryan looks upon his pal Termite, facing him on the opposite side. Next to Ryan, a few more squad members but next to Termite none. 6 in total. Termite is constantly looking like he's gonna crap his pants as he looks at what's ahead. Ryan puts a consoling hand on Termite's shoulder, suggesting that it's gonna be alright.

'What's the plan again Lieutenant?' wonders one of the squad members.

'*boots up his wrist pad and a holographic image of the battlefield appears* We are at 16 North and 46 West. Our destination is 28 North and 56 West. We'll meet up with Lima unit there. They were the once popping the balloon.'

'Lima eh?' interrupts another. 'What are they doing here? I mean... it's mostly light infantry and armored cars. Save for a few rocket-launching trucks but...'

'Save those comments for the after-action report soldier. If you all would look ahead, you will see what makes Termite here piss his pants. *large tracer-round bullet storm flies over their heads* That is Turret Pass. A trap set up by those assholes. However, the sandstorm from a few days ago titled them. Now they are just firing away... above our heads. That's where we need to turn right to meet up with Lima... *incoming call* Shit! Just a sec.

*Call*

_Second Lieutenant Ryan Steller reporting!_

_Steller, this is Captain Dawson. Are we alone?_

_*covers the pad as best as possible* Positive. Did you manage to find anything that will get him out of this fuckheap!?  
_

_At ease Lieutenant._

_Sorry Captain. It's just... he's my pal. _

_I know... that's why this must go silent. It's true. We have everything on him. Manifests, bank transactions... EVERYTHING! He comprised himself. _

_It-it can't be... he would never..._

_Steller, you have your orders. Separate him from the group, take him with you and end him. As quiet as possible._

_I-i..._

_Steller... do it. It's him... or you. Dawson out._

*Call*

*Another 20 minutes later*

'EVERYBODY GET DOWN!' screams Ryan as adrenaline blurs his vision. An artillery shell strikes behind him, but is too far to launch him or the Rhino. Bullets dart all around him, squeaking in the process. Rockets crash down into the already obliterated but still standing bunker where the last remaining enemies hold their positions. Another Lima unit truck gets blown to pieces while the 40mm turret comes up from the roof of the half-track. A HD-ATMG combo is placed on the side, making it look like an ugly Siamese-twin. Termite mans the 40mm auto-cannon while Ryan cocks the triplet MG's.

'You ready!?' shouts Ryan towards everyone.

'YES SIR!'

'MOVE OUT!'

The four other soldiers hops off the Rhino who stopped in its tracks. More Rhino's join formation as Cornerian Fighters fly overhead, carpet bombing the bunker. With a heavy blast, the first shot comes out of the barrel of Termite's 40mm while Ryan is going Commando with the ATMG's.

*Radio*

_Everyone, do you copy!?_

_AY!_

_Great. From now on: only this form of communication. Theirs is down and we can't hear anything with all this bullshit going on. Lima, retreat and report to Dawson Central for evacuation._

_Copy that Rhino 2-6. Thanks for the takeover. _

_Youjeva? Do you copy?_

_This is Youjeva 7, when and where?_

_Now and directly in front of us!_

_We heard you. Incoming! Lights out in 20 minus 10 seconds. Over._

_Everyone! Get back towards the Rhino! We're gonna clear that village!_

*Radio*

Fireworks and violence, that words can't describe. Nothing was left of the bunker. Everything was wiped clean. Only the entrance to the underground village. Some 10 minutes later, I found out that I've separated him from the rest.

*Radio*

_Termite, where are you?_

_Let me check... 3 floors above you. Why?_

_We need to have a word. Let see what's going on with the others._

_Copy._

_Larson? _

_Steller... *sigh* Everything is going great. But this 'village' is getting to me. This is scarier than the Paris Catacombs for fuck's sake!  
_

_Light a frickin' flashlight you idiot. One thing, I'll be going deeper, see what over there. I'll lose comms._

_No probs._

_Termite? Still there buddy?_

_Yup. _

_I'm coming towards you. Remain where you are._

*Radio*

With his paws in front of his face, his eyes bursting out with red, he is sitting on few boxes, with Sahara standing on his left and Terminator in front of him. Sahara looks very compassionate at him, but Terminator isn't giving a shit about him.

'And what happened next?' asks Sahara. It enrages Ryan as he rises in an instance. His tear-infested face gives a stale expression, but deep down, Sahara sees the real feeling. Regret and sorrow as Ryan walks away without saying anything to Sahara in her face.

'I'll be working on your racer Sahara.' says Ryan. 'I need some distraction.' he ends as he walks out of the lounge room. With a fierce look on her face, she turns to Terminator. Ambiguous though, because she is curious about what happened next. Terminator notices this.

'What happened next? *chuckle* This! *points at his eye-patch* Happened. We met each other on the 3rd floor, like we agreed on. So, I was just waiting there, in the dark and narrow hallways when all of a sudden he walking towards me, very hazy. He was breathing heavily, like he was transforming or something. I shined my flashlight upon his face and he reacts very timid. I asked what was wrong... and he said: 'Just stand still. Don't move... and let it come over you.' Of course, I had no idea what he was talking about. Until I saw the bright reflection of his blade, held in his right paw. It was shaking; he didn't want it but had to do it.

*Flashback*

_'Dude... what's going on? Why are you holding that blade?'_

_'Some questions need to remain unanswered. *swallows* J-just stand still. Please...' pleads Ryan as he clearly can't take it anymore._

_'Okay, okay. Easy there. *I've never seen him like this! He's deranged or something... this is not Ryan as I knew him!* Ryan... who put you up to this?'_

_'*covers his wrist pad* He's listening.'_

I had no idea where he was referring to, but as soon as I saw that he desperately trying to cover his wrist pad, I knew it.

_'Who... is listening? *notices* Dawson?' whispers Termite._

_'*nods* I have strict orders. T-to kill you.'_

_'WHAT!? But... why?'_

_'*angry* Oh, don't go mister innocent on me Termite. Dawson found out what you selling secrets to the rebels! You are the reason at Lima got hammered! You wondered why there was a balloon above Lima's position because it would scar you connection with the rebels if they found out about it. But not only that... also the Pickle Incident?'_

'Pickles!?' interrupts Sahara.

'Yeah... pickles.' sighs Terminator. 'Dumb desert bitch never heard of pickles? I sabotaged the meal of the army commander, putting, unintentionally, Dawson as head of command of the operation. I put some toxic shit in his pickle. Most of his teeth fell out and he choked to death. Can I continue now?'

_'Pickle!? Now you really gotta stop spitting out pure shit! I didn't cause it!'_

_'Of course not. Than how the fuck do you explain all the evidence!? Grrr... you were right about those scars. When they find out that we nailed those bastards to the ground, they are gonna find your body in it!'_

_'*draws his pistol* I shouldn't do it...'_

_'TRY ME!'_

He charged at me and knocked the gun out of my hand. I ran away after a brief struggle and we finally ended up on the surface. We crashed into a wooden cabin and the struggle continued. He was on top of me and tried to stab my eye out. I held him back for as long as I could, but I wasn't strong enough. *shiver* I screamed... goddamn I screamed! I wasn't dead yet and he couldn't get the knife out. He found a spike and even tried to go for my other eye. I fainted... and he couldn't finish it. Leaving me with this. He got the nickname Deadeye for it. And now I'm here make sure he'll never forget that he did this to me.' ends Terminator. He glares at Sahara.

'I think you should run.' he warns in advance. Calm, Sahara walks out of the lounge room, leaving Terminator as the only one behind. Until Gyro approaches Terminator from behind out of nowhere. Terminator can feel his presence behind him as he turns around, in battle ready position. However, the claws and fangs return as he sees that Gyro just standing there, looking in all directions.

'Who is this clown?' mocks Terminator.

'My name is Gyro.' introduces Gyro. 'Have you seen my partner Scarecrow by any coincidence? *looks to his left and right* I can't seem to find him.'

'I torched him.' jokes Terminator. But Gyro just stands there. The small smile on his face, his sorta unsettling calmness and his eyes looking at everything and nothing... it confuses Terminator a little. If confuses him even more when Gyro simply says:

'Shame. Well it happens. *bows and turns around* good day.' he bids goodbye as he walks out of the lounge room

Terminator is left alone, scratching his head. *What kind of freaks roam around here!? *shakes his head in disarray* I need to take a seat.* he thinks as he drops himself on the sofa. 'Pfff...' he exhales. 'I need to clear my head. Let's see, I was here to replace some idiot and take care of Dyam. Easy eh? Okay, and Ryan is of secondary importance. I can take care of him when the time comes.' he says to himself.

'When what time comes?' asks Mawile suspicious as she enters the lounge room. She has a different sort of costume. She has her right side of her face covered in a mask. It matches with the Aparoidedation on her body. The mask displays three black spider eyes, diagonally in a row. It has a feathery end, with three white feathers. If fits perfectly with her newly styled hair. It looks exactly like Krystal's style (Starfox Adventures), only slightly more entangled. From her left shoulder to her right hip, she wears a light brown leather belt. A holster is attached to the right hip part and four small bolts are on the front part of the belt. One iron ring is strapped around her anklet as she wears a pair of light gray hotpants. The sides of the harpoon-like sting is laid in with red pearls, going from big to smaller.

'Dressed up for the occasion?' comments Terminator sarcastically.

'I'am.' ruins Mawile. '*looks around* Hey, where is Ryan? I was told he would be here.' wonders Mawile.

'I scared him off.'

The flytrap on her shoulder starts to bite towards Terminator, who backs down, almost reaching for what's inside the bag. Mawile strokes its head, calming it down.

'Shhh...' she soothes. 'Where is he?'

'I don't know! Why should I... hey what the...' stumbles Terminator when he suddenly looks at an arrow tip pointed at his remaining eye. Mawile is holding a small, handheld crossbow she grabbed from her holster. Carved out of wood with a black finish. Terminator looks surprised at first, but starts laughing a second later.

'Sure... aiming that little bow at me is gonna make me tell it.' mocks Terminator. Mawile's response is simple: She withdraws the bow away from Terminator's face, aims for a stone bust and pulls the trigger. Going right through the middle, the arrow pierces right through. The force is large enough to blow off the neck and arm stubs. Sliding the top half of the bow upwards with the belt, the back-end of another bolt stretches the bowstring back. A click is heard and the crossbow is already prepped as it aims for Terminator's eye again.

'Tell me. *reaches for her back* Or else I'm getting out the bigger gun.' she threatens as she grabs her maroon colored violin. Terminator has another laugh coming up but it's quickly drenched when he sees that the bigger part of the violin actually is formed as the front of a crossbow. The bow design is integrated, firing from inside and it actually features a trigger on the underside. Seeing the threat, Terminator admits.

'Fine... he's off to work on Sahara's ride. Getting jealous already?'

Mawile shrugs and walks off. 'You're nothing but a joke.' bites Mawile as she walks around the corner.

'Go fuck yourself!' he shouts after. With a deep sigh, he realizes that Mawile is right. He came in to take revenge on Ryan in the first. It succeeded, however he failed to impress the rest and is even owned by them. Not only that, but he also has to take care of Dyam first. Not knowing a way out of this problem, it gets only worse when Gyro enters the room again. He's humming, which only annoys Terminator. He rises from the couch and confronts Gyro head on.

'Oh.' notices Gyro. 'Look who we have here.'

'Shut up fool! Is everybody around here a freak or something!?'

Gyro doesn't respond. He's just standing there, with that smile of him. The silence starts to get awkward and only now Terminator really sees that Gyro's eyes go all over the place. It annoys him even more.

'What are you looking at Google!? I'm right here!' ridiculous Terminator, treating Gyro like some blind person. However, even Terminator didn't saw this coming:

'I'm looking at everything. *chuckle* It's a lot more interesting than whatever is standing in front of me.'

Terminator defiantly had enough. Just like Chase, something snaps as he unleashes as punch towards Gyro. With a vile shriek, Gyro's praying hands switch position; the left one goes up and the right one goes down. It unleashes a magnetic burst, as well as temporary deafness. All sorts of metal objects are hauled towards the center of magnetic gravity, right before Gyro's face. Terminator's fist strikes into a metal plate, denting it in the form of the fist. It clings on the ground with Terminator being the only one with pain.

'The curse of the past.' concludes Gyro. 'You are what you are. Life has formed you and nothing can change that. Your mind might think so... but your heart screams the truth. You are nothing but a joke as Terminator. TERMITE! That... is the real you.' Gyro bows and walks away.

Instead of accepting it, accepting what Gyro just said, Terminator makes a fist out of anger. It shakes him, it rushes through every fiber, very atom in his body. Until, it suddenly stops. No more shaking, but more relaxed and sophisticated. The frown on his face turns into an all-embracing smirk.

'Curse of the past... doesn't sound too bad. I shouldn't worry. Why should I care, what others think? New rules, NEW SHIT! If Rye wants it, he's gonna have to pay extra. And Ryan... Har har... you should be honored to be my main target! And I'm gonna get you through your ladybug: Sahara.'

*Somewhere else*

'Sit down.' demands the voice in the dark. The whole room is dark. The only light, coming from the open door towards the hallway, is largely blocked by the shadows of Panther and Leon, as Wolf himself sits on the chair. He can barely see the desk in front of him. He wipes off some blood from under his nose; he can still feel that heavy nightstand crash into him.

'What seems to be the problem? I thought you had it done?' wonders the voice.

'I'm sorry Ry...' apologizes Wolf.

'SHH!' silences the voice quickly. 'Not say my name you wolfram! You never know who might be listening.'

'With voice recognition software it shouldn't be hard.' comments Panther dry.

'*To Wolf* Can you shut that cocksucker up!? *whispering* That guy only thinks with his dick, doesn't he?' chuckles the voice.

'Let's just focus on the case.'

'Oh yeah... what is the problem?'

'The diplomat plan failed and dickbrain *much to Panther's horror* behind me got a stalled detonation...'

'THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID!' states the voice out of nowhere, nearly flying over the desk, before haggling and concentrating again. 'Continue.'

'With a failed bomb. So what now?'

'*turns to his right in the dark as he turns on a TV screen* This is footage from the lounge room, a few hours ago. *turns the screen towards the Starwolf team* I've hired some nut called Terminator. He proved his worth at first, by eliminating two racers. Hurricane and Scarecrow. Scarecrow was unnecessary but still. But, he got owned by two background racers. An Aparoided mutant and some monk with a saw in his forehead. *turns the screen off* I'm desperate too. *places his hands on the desk* So, I'm turning to you guys, one... last... fucking... time. Like I've said before: Dyam is costing me my precious retirement. I should be laying on the pearl white beaches of Zoness, live a luxurious villa surrounds by thousands beauties where even Venus de fucking Milo couldn't tip to! I deserve it! *slams a bottle on the ground*'

'I'm sure you do. What can we do to help?'

'*calms down and sits back in his chair, thinking* Hmmm... I got it. Dyam is in mental disarray. You guys need to take advantage of that. Talk him into... uh... committing suicide or something. Let your fantasy speak on this one. If that doesn't work... *grabs something of the wall and places it in front of Wolf on the desk* ...then you can always use this.' says the voice proud.

The silhouette of the weapon integers Wolf. It looks fairly ancient but powerful too. He picks it up as Leon enlightens it with his flashlight. Like a crossbow, it is made out of a slab of wood. Gold decorations, typically 18th century Rococo style. Overdone, but it's system is simple. Operating like sawn-off double-barreled shotgun (minus the second barrel), it's easy to use. A large, bulky and round shell is given to them.

'This is the Gut Shot. This shotgun shell is made out of nothing more than pure shit and rubble. Made it when I was declared dead on Katina. Someone poisoned my pickles and now I'm allergic to those fuckers. If I found out who... anyway, when you fire it, the whole thing will be fired. Everything will be blasted out of the barrel with only the percussion cap as physical evidence. Keep it or throw it away in space. Well now... you have your weapon and your task. After the race, we'll see how much money Dyam gives me. It depends if you can strike that instant, or you have to wait a minute or so. Now begone. Start preparing.'

Terminator set himself some strict rules and Rye is setting up the rules too. More and more tension is coming upon Sahara, Dyam and now Ryan too. Next chapter: the race. Let's see what happens there...

**Thanks for nearly 2000 views for G-Zero!**


	14. Dyam is gone!

**THANKS FOR MORE THAN !&# 2230 VIEWS!**

Rye, or the voice, has given Starwolf its task: take care of Dyam when the time comes. Sahara, or Krystal in this case, is planning something similar, but it will turn out somewhat different.

**Chapter 14: Dyam is gone!  
**

'That was some conversation eh?' comments Leon as he closes the door behind Wolf and Panther.

'Hunh?' mumbles Wolf absent. 'Oh... yeah. We'll find a way.' he waves off with his left paw. His right is holding the Gut Shot they acquired from Rye. He holds the stock against his shoulder, pointing the short barrel upwards. Panther is carrying the shells that Rye gave extra, just in case.

Everything seem to be smooth sailing, until a small red eye leans around a wall close by the door of Rye's office. *It's time to show them that I'm not kidding. And what better way to show it... to the guys Rye replaced me for!* he grumbles inaudible.

Walking down the hallway, the three notice that all of the sudden all the lights go out. The emergency generator boots up but needs to charge, giving the hallway leading away from Rye's room, a red gleam. It's eerie for Wolf and Leon, but it reminds Panther of good times on 'The Strip' in El Arenal on Zoness, a touristic attraction for the common youth, were there are no limitations. His reaction to Wolf's throw of the Gut Shot to him is lightening fast, although he barely catches it. He breaks open the barrel, puts a shell in it, 'fixes' it, pulls the hammer back, flips up the leaf sight on the back of the barrel plus a front spike on the front of the barrel and aims around him. Both Wolf and Leon are slightly squatted and armed, able to jump away at anytime.

'What exactly are we looking for?' wonders Panther, closing eye for a clearer sight between the iron sight of the weapon.

'No idea. *looks ahead, further on in the hallway were he sees that the lights are still on* But it seems we are its target.' concludes Wolf as he activates the extra aim assistance features on his blue mechanical eye.

*Hmmm... they are armed. A direct approach will mean my instant death. *looks over to his giant, rectangular bag* And I can't her yet. *looks at what lays next to the bag* He was half of the plan. Well, it is sufficient. *grabs it, pulls it towards him and prepares to throw it as he peeks one last time* They'll know I'm around!*

With a scream, he tosses the thing that looks like a rag towards the Starwolf team before he runs away in the other direction, away from it. Leon hears the scream first and is therefore the first to react. The rag slams on the ground and stops right before Leon's feet. All the members gather around it as the lights are turned back on; the emergency generator finally works. To their horror, it's not a rag. It is actually Scarecrow, the missing racer. And just like Terminator said: 'I torched him'. A small flames are still burning around the scarecrow suit. Rips within the costume, reveal that it's actually a red vulpine pretending to be a living scarecrow. He has a tag around his neck, which is punctured by an iron spike through the middle. The tag reads: 'Terminated', with the spike going through the hole in the 'a'. Leon snaps the chain and holds the tag in his hand, before moving it closer to Wolf's face. After carefully reading it all, he simply shrugs.

'A warning huh? Pfff... sure. My ass is more threating than that.' mocks Wolf.

'We might wanna watch our backs more often though.' says Panther. 'The route we are currently taking is full of competition.' He lowers the Gut Shot and unloads it.

'Wow.' stops Wolf. 'Stop right there. YOU... are on that route. Not Leon and me. We're not involved. Your Krystal, not ours. You take the blame when shit goes to hell, understood?'

'Grrr... sure.' admits Panther grumbling.

Wolf nods in acceptance as he leads the group towards the hallway that was still enlightened. He stops by Dyam's door as he turns towards Leon and Panther.

'Okay. I'm gonna prepare some shit. Just like Rye said, we can use our imagination. In this case... mine! I'm sorry but yours *points at Panther* is too weak and yours *looks at Leon with an odd expression on his face* uuuhh... I don't know what is going inside your head. *turns to the both of them* So we play it safe. No bullshit. Now begone, if wanna you quote Rye. You're excused.' ends Wolf as Panther puts the Gut Shot in his backpack and walks away with Leon. Wolf leans against the wall, on the left of the door. He bows his head and crosses his arms, thinking about what he's gonna say to Dyam. The moment a light bulb lights up in his brain, he turns off the extra features in his mechanical since they are getting more annoying than helpful. He turns towards the door, knocks two time before opening it. He turns the knob; it isn't locked. When he sets his first step inside, it isn't very inviting. The room is dark and an empty bottle of absinthe is thrown towards him.

'I'M ALL OUT! *slams his fist on the table* grrr... *very restrained and soft* it ain't gonna benefit my position. No absinthe means he can doom up anytime soon... *notices Wolf from the corner of his eye as he turns on the light* Who the fuck are you?'

'That you don't remember me... glarg?' chokes Wolf as Dyam has flown towards him and wrapped his hands around Wolf's neck. Wolf falls down on the ground, hurting his back pretty badly as Dyam stands over him, still squeezing his throat tight. Placing his left paw on the Adam's apple with a fierce pressure, he makes a fist out of his right paw. Although it is restrained at first, even the passenger inside of him likes to return a beating to for once.

*This is for that message that ruined me in the first place Furball!* insults Fox as he and Dyam agree on something for the first time. Together, they smash into Wolf's mechanical eye before Dyam lets go of Wolf. He's knocked out, but at least alive since he starts to reclaims his breath slowly.

'Surprise motherfucker!' adds Dyam insult to injury. 'Don't expect me to recognize ugly ass dudes like you! Especially when I'm all out of energy asshole!' states Dyam before he spits on Wolf's face before walking over him. 'Excuse me. I've an appointment.' says Fox all of the sudden while Dyam is kicked out the controls. Fox laughs in himself as he grabs a note out of his pocket, saying to be at storage number 429 at 19:00. He checks his wristpad, displaying 17:12. He starts to laugh in himself again as he places his hands on the back of his head, happy to breath in the fresh air. Him, not Dyam.

_Storage 429, 18:57_

'Is everything ready?'

'Yup, everything is ready. Thrilled?'

'Well of course Ryan. Shouldn't you be?'

'A little. Being a little nervous is actually very healthy you know...'

'Sure sure. *pushing him away* Just get up there and make sure that everything will be directed well.'

'But of course your highness. *makes an overdone bow* Anything else to grace your majesty?'

'*giggle followed by a royal toned, snobbery voice, playing along with Ryan* No... it's okay. You are excused.'

'*another bow as he walks backwards that way* Yes your majesty.'

'Haha... you know that I appreciate everything you've done for me, right Ryan?'

'Of course Sahara. *climbs up the ladder on the wall* You just focus on surprised the living hell out of your boyfriend.'

*outside*

He takes a last look at the note he got. He reads it out loud for himself.

'Meet me at Storage 429 *starts to look around impatiently* Well? Anyone?' he complains. No wonder he complains. The sunny weather turned into pouring rain with whirlwind occasionally hitting the scene and Fox head on. For a distance, it's actually remarkable to see the raindrops form waves, distinguishable from the normal drops. However, even with wearing a thick winter coat with (fake) dead collar, that isn't enough to deceive the rotten feeling of standing in the rain, all alone and waiting for someone. Like a gift from heaven, the enormous garage door opens, much to Fox's relieve. Dyam wasn't dooming up, on the contrary; he's just glad that the door opens. It doesn't matter what's inside; he needs a dry place. The door opens only so far but Fox can easily walk under it. It falls down the moment Fox stands in the storage and utter darkness surrounds him.

'Well... at least I'm dry.' comments Fox awkward, to lighten the situation a little. He takes off his coat and throws it away.

*He's here! Hit it!* he hears someone whispering from somewhere in front of him.

'Hey... who is there?' shouts Fox before he's blinded by fierce lights coming from in front of him. He protects his eyes from it by holding his paws before it.

*Everything is still working. Initiating the projection... are you ready?*

*I'am!*

*Then jump!* hears Fox as the lights go out again. 'Who is supposed to jump!? What is this for sick joke!?' he shouts before a holographic projection of a small, double-edged vector graphed cube appears in front of him. He comes closer to it and touches it. This causes it to expand to a massive size, only to be held back by the walls and ceiling of the storage. What wasn't black yet, sure becomes black now; from the the edges, black seems to drop down from. Before Fox even realizes it, he's is standing an a wide open grass field with the star-infested night as a backdrop. Some dew on the grass sparkles in the moonlight. A cool breeze sweeps through the open field, flattening it. It blows from behind him, meaning that the directly in front of him is standing upright. With the difference clear, the upstanding grass seem to figure as a path. Everything seems so real, but he knows it's just a projection. He is eager to know more about this all, so he follows the path while he looks around. The path stops the moment the wind subsides, stopping Fox in his tracks. The sky, the environment... all seem to be very familiar.

*How is this possible? *looks up in the sky and can't believe his eyes* No... it can't be! That gleaming star... it's power and light. *sees the small black dot* No frickin' way!* thinks Fox as something inside him starts to crumble. But he couldn't be happier with both as the black dot comes bigger by the second. Finally, after just a half minute, Fox can distinguish the black dot with it's actual form: The Cloud Runner. Although it is in a different color scheme and it misses the 'head', it still looks very similar. As the Cloud Runner lands before him, everything in his body does the exact same thing:

_I would experience feelings... that would exceed any poets capabilities. My heart would sing the purest love song of all. My face would speak ten thousand volumes of the most popular and wheedling love romans..._

His eyes see the gates of heaven open before him as the cockpit opens. Dramatic, white smoke comes gliding over the main full of the Cloud Runner as the Queen arises from it.

_Her beautiful white face would turn to me. Her ocean deep turquoise blue eyes, where anyone unworthy of her beauty would be honored to drown in. Her smile... the warmth and kindness could make a dying star shine again._

With only her the tips of her toes touching the square patterns on the wing of the ship as he moves closer to Fox, see really seem to float. Every square lights up underneath her feet. She is dressed in heavenly white, glittering silk dress while her hair hangs loose around her head and shoulders. Gravity doesn't seem to affect her as she gradually touches the ground, her eyes looking right into his. He stands there frozen, while inside everything burns. She moves closer to Fox, who feels the wall that stood between him and Dyam, explode. Pulverized, shattered; nothing is left of it. As two equals inside one body, they face each other. In this case, Fox clearly has the upper hand when Krystal comes very close. It ends in a kiss, becoming more passionate by the second.

Unknown to them, Ryan shuts down the vector-based simulation and turns on the normal lights while they just continue. Nothing seems to separate the two. Until a loud noise is heard. They look up and as Fox sees what it is, he pushes Krystal away and backs off just one step. Just in time; a heavy steel cable dropped down from the ceiling. It leaves a small crack in the floor.

'Are you okay Krystal?' exhales Fox as he tries to dim the adrenaline. She nods, but looks up with a concerned expression on her face. But that concern turns into something more hilarious; she is facing Ryan's back, as he's is holding on to two other steel cables, that are supposed to hold up the catwalk where he's walking on.

'Old piece of shit!' complains Ryan as he lifts himself up and turns towards the happy couple. 'Sorry you guys. Didn't wanna disrupt anything. *see the two really happy with each other* Hey Sahara... I was wrong. You are Krystal, and that guy is Fox McCloud. I should have known... but I didn't. *grabs two ropes close to him* Krystal. If you will detach those ropes around your arms, then you're home free again.'

Now Fox sees the clear picture. The Cloud Runner was simulated with the use of the projection, the wind was artificial and it is actually Krystal's Desert Strom, not the Cloud Runner. Krystal floated in the air because Ryan regulated that with the ropes. Putting so much effort into just realized Fox's dream, he is overjoyed, but doesn't really show it. He show a small smile as he lets out a tear; Dyam is putting up a fight again.

'Krystal... thank you so much.' says Fox as he holds in more tears while he pulls his face away. But Krystal sees that Fox isn't completely himself as his face shows some twitches. No excuse can cover that up. She places two comforting paws on his shoulders as she turns his face towards hers. With a lovely smile, she says:

'Fox... I don't mind.' she says as they embrace each other. 'I can see right through it. Dyam is messing it all up again... *faces him again* isn't?'

'Yeah...' nods Fox as he dries off the one tear he shed. 'But... not for long. I'm gonna show him that I'm in control. And I already know how. I'm gonna need some extra time.'

'If you need extra time...' interrupts Ryan, still on top of the catwalk. '...you can report that with the commentator. He's the one controlling the tracks, narration and the introduction of all racers. The race is supposed to start around 20:00, but you can delay it to 22:00 max. I'd better hurry. *points at her* And you too. I'll clean up everything here.'

With a last kiss, Fox walks away while Krystal gets back into her Desert Storm. Fox goes back to the hotel, while Krystal enters the Colosseum. Fox opens the door to his room, throws his winter coat on a hook on the wall and sits down on the chair before the mirror. Wolf's absence goes unnoticed. Out of the drawer on the right side of the table, he grabs two things: a razor and an earring. Originally, he wanted to give it to Krystal. It was an angular momentum; he wanted to propose to Krystal, but not the old fashioned way. Claiming that the love between him and Krystal was very special, he wanted to ask her by an earring. Now it is serving a different purpose. A few muscles refuse closing the drawer, as Dyam notices what Fox is trying to do: get rid of everything that made him Dyam. Fox pushes through and breaks Dyam's resistance and closes the drawer. Looking at himself in the mirror, he brings the razor closer to his chin.

The first target: the goatee beard. Again, Dyam resists, harder this time. It is the second battle what Fox wins as the razor prints itself against Fox's skin. The more he shaves away, the further Dyam falls deeper and into disarray, like an AI getting hacked. With a clean chin (fur isn't shaved away), he strokes it and feels himself more and more. Dyam's resistance moves to Fox's face and fingertips, but it's their last stand. The fingertips are the first to fall when Fox touches the golden earring.

*Time for the final blow! And then I'm in control.* thinks Fox as he holds the ring in front of his face, seeing the exact same reflection in the mirror. His feelings deep inside don't reflect what his face shows. The total opposite in fact. He couldn't be happier and self-assured while his face glares at him. It's Dyam's last intimidation before Fox too regains control of those muscles and nerves in that area. Dyam is reduced to what Fox was at first: a dark passenger, in the chains of forgot! With no resistance whatsoever, Fox places the ring over the chuck in his right ear. It stings, but it's worth it.

*This has to do for now. As soon as Krystal and I get out of this mad place and this situation, I'll see a plastic surgeon to repair my ear. *stares himself in the eye in the mirror reflection* Hmmm..* he thinks before giving himself a fist bump in the mirror.

'Welcome back Fox McCloud. Dyam is gone!' states Fox to himself as he cheers like he won the ticket to the G-Zero Master Series. But in this case... the key to redemption, freedom and love.

_Thanks to her, G-Zero and Dyam are dead... Only I remain... and my name is Fox McCloud._

Dyam is gone! For good? Maybe, he's still inside. And Wolf remains at large. With the race starting any second now and danger lurking around every corner for Fox, Krystal and Ryan... there doesn't seem to be a way out. Even though friends can be far... no way they are gonna let you perish in that lurking evil! Next chapter: The Race to Destruction


	15. Introduction to the truth

Because I want to cut in length, the race is postponed to Chapter 16. The introduction of everyone is now at order. For some characters, it will be a revealation of their true kind and affection. Let's have a look!

**Chapter 15: Introduction to the truth  
**

'WEEEEEELCOOOOME EVERYBODY!' is yelled by the commentator, leaning back in his chair holding the microphone in his paws. This time, a speaker actually bursts in a fury of sparks and screeching sounds, only to be loved by the crowd. The track still looks like it did a few hours ago: the 0-track. The big totem lights up again and displays some of the legendary replays in the careers of all the racers. All those racers including Ryan, with the exception of Scarecrow, Chase and Terminator, are standing backstage. Some are very thrilled to the point that they have to depend on each other's support, while others stare at the TV's being set up to follow the thing live. In the case of depending; Mawile against Ryan. Another hazy joke is told by him and it enlightens the general spirit a little. The only one really calm is Gyro, just standing there with his ever gracing smile. Krystal stands next to Fox, who is communicating with an organizer. When he's done, the organizer leaves and Fox swings his right arm around Krystal, who lays her head on his shoulder. Staring at the closed garage door before them, they too can hear the commentator yell through the speakers.

'Well... here it is.' comments Fox. '*turns his head towards Krystal's* I'm glad we are together again Krys.'

The vixen smiles back and borrows her head even deeper in between Fox's neck and shoulder. 'I couldn't be happier either Fox. Who knows what would have become of me if I was with Panther.'

She shivers at the idea, but the coldness of that shiver vaporizes like snow in the sun when Fox brings her closer to him.

'Do you promise to never let me go? Ever again?'

'With my very heart and soul... *kisses her on the head* Nevermore.' states Fox as he gives another kiss. 'Nevermore...'

With a loud crack, the door before them opens a little, snapping some out of their conversations as a small bit of light from the stadium lights graces the floor before Fox and Krystal's feet. The commentator's voice is getting clearer and louder by the second.

'And now... for our racers. Who will be the lucky one to be parading around with number 1 on his racer? Let's find out! Start up the Probability!' commands the commentator as all the racers appear on screen, tiled horizontally. The numbers 1 till 8 appear too and randomly, the racers are connected to them. All the racers are now bundled around the TV's.

*Numbers*

_1. Sahara  
2. Ché  
3. Scarecrow  
4. Mawile  
5. Dyam  
6. Hurricane  
7. Big Daddy  
8. Gyro_

*Numbers*

'Now, these numbers mean nothing yet. Probability, my favorite probability simulator, has to go through them. Each racer now has their own number. Let's see who will get number 1 on his racer and who number 8! Probability... WORK YOUR MAGIC!'

Like a slot machine with 8 slots, it starts to spin. The numbers described are 8-**5**-2-4-**5**-**5**-4-1.

'And Dyam will be the lucky one with number 1 on his Arwing!'

Celebrations go around the stadium but also backstage. Applause is certainly at its place. Fox receives a kiss (unnoticed by the others) as a reward from Krystal.

'How does it feel... Dyam?' she plagues. But Fox can't really take it as a joke. Not that he's offended; he shivers at the idea. 'Are you okay Fox?' asks Krystal concerned and ashamed. *I didn't know it was that sensitive*

Fox sees that Krystal really didn't know. He shakes it off and strokes Krystal's face. 'Everything is alright. You couldn't have known. I don't blame you.' soothes Fox.

The next numbers are described: 3-**2**-**2**-5-8-7-8-4-**2**. Ché is number 2.

'Awesome!' he comments.

But suddenly the turning of the slots stop as the screen fills up with static. 'Uuuhm...' stumbles the commentator as he carefully listens to what has been told to him in his ear piece.

'Uhh... ladies and gentlemen. There... *swallows* has been a rather unfortunate occurrence. To our deepest regret, we have to report that Scarecrow, number 3 on the list will not be participating. *Can't let them know that he's dead...* Instead... his replacement has reported himself. *a little bit more enthusiastic* The new number 3 is: Terminator!'

'WHAT!?' shouts Ryan full of disbelief. He slams the glass he was holding on the ground as he rises from the chair he was sitting on. He turns his back to everyone, including Mawile as he grumbles in himself. 'I... I need to be alone for a sec. *turns his face half to Mawile with a sobbing expression on his face* I'm sorry...' he apologizes as he walks away. He opens the door to the public bathroom and slams it shut.

'What's up with him?' wonders Ché, still in the party mood.

'His past Ché.' comments Gyro out of nowhere. 'His past has caught up with him. *turns to everybody* Terminator, or better known as Termite, used to be his best friend. When Termite turned rogue, it was his task to eliminate the threat. He couldn't finish the job... leaving him and Termite scarred. In Ryan's case, *looks at the door of the bathroom* emotionally.' he explains.

'Damn... *bumps himself with a fist twice on the heart before making a peace sign with his fingers* Respect.' sympathizes Ché.

'Although this is wonderful and all... can we just focus on the TV?' mutters Dyam as Fox quickly shuts his own trap with his paws. *What the frick!?*

In all the commotion that follows between those actually turning their attention to the TV again and those we find it forthright rude, Mawile goes away from the argument, passing by a approving Gyro and heads over to the bathroom. She knocks softly, three times before turning the knob. It isn't locked but Ryan is nowhere to be found. Mawile can see where Ryan locked himself in though; all stalls are open except one. Her footsteps are heard by him.

'Who's there...?' he says hoarse followed by a sniffle.

'It's Mawile, Ryan. Who are you doing?' she asks nicely as she closes the door and locks it. *He needs support, not commotion. Let them stew in their own juice! Bah... Dyam with his stupid comments.*

'Well... *blows his nose* aside from the fact that *walks out of the stall and places his hands on a sink* the only real friend I ever had is trying to make my life a miserable heap of pain and sorrow... *flips the faucet as he looks up in the mirror, seeing Mawile's reflection* I'm pretty good.'

'It is that awful?' wonders Mawile a little withdrawn. She doesn't wanna help Ryan's growing stress and panic to a higher level. Unfortunately for her, it still happens.

'*splashes some water in his face and flips the faucet again, turning it off* Have you seen that asshole? *turns his back on Mawile to dry his paws with a hand dryer* Geh... then you'll see what I've done to him.'

Mawile almost laughs. 'Yeah... I've seen that. You turned him into an unconvincing idiot.' she comments. Suddenly, the dryer stops and Ryan sees to jam in his movement, like glitch. Within a fraction of a second, Ryan has himself turned around and facing Mawile very close.

'Do not! I repeat DO NOT! Take that guy for granted...' he warns very threatening. He doesn't mean it that way, but somehow, the anger must get out. Mawile realizes that; she too had to subside when it was about her past. Ryan is just starting, so you can't blame him really... 'and you'll be dead before you can even say 'SHIT!'. He is dangerous when he's around an environment that is 'explosive' to him in any sort of way! Stay away for him! *grabs his head and turns around* I-i don't wanna lose someone else... not someone like you...' ends Ryan.

Mawile, deeply touched, places a comforting paw on Ryan's right shoulder. Ryan turns around because of this. He expected many things: more comfort from her smile or a push in the back like in: 'come on!'. But instead, he receives something that is both of those things; Mawile has Ryan embraced in a loving kiss. Her tail curls around the two as the dull part of the harpoon softly places itself on Ryan's right shoulder.

*A few minutes later*

With Dyam at number 1, followed by Ché, Terminator, Big Daddy, Sahara, Hurricane, Mawile and Gyro, only 5 racers stand at the garage door opening. Fox and Krystal look at each other for one last time before it all begins.

'Hey.' calls Fox out to her. 'Whatever happened back there... *fiddles with the earring* Dyam is nothing more than a shadow. But that doesn't mean that I'm gonna go easy on you.'

'*puts in her eye lenses* Neither will I.' she states as the two look at the garage door opening.

'The first one to be introduced is the Fallen One that had a small transformation. Now having a clean shaved chin and an earring, he's planning to go on the warpath! Please welcome DYYYYYAAAAAAM!'

A large section of the standing track makes way for a giant circle, where Fox's Arwing III is staged upon. Land of Confusion by Genesis plays, the only rock song from the '80 he found worthy of playing. It also attributes to his split-personality. With a calm walking routine and the same robotic waving and neutral facial expression where he is famous for, he approaches his Arwing. Once he stands near it, he turns around and shows himself in the camera's.

'Numero 2 is someone very special. Born on Corneria and raised on Katina. He joined the army but was left out of duty because his arms was cut off right before the war. Now wearing a pair of black sunglasses, a gauntlet prosthesis and in the possession of a great technological mind... it is CHÉEEEEEEE!'

'My turn bitches!' he shouts. He walks up towards the large circle when Device's Vilify starts playing. He raises his hands as green numbers starts surround the empty spot on the stand next to Fox's Arwing III. The number count begins to grow and form Ché's racer: the Materializer. He takes off his sunglasses, to reveal that green colored numbers come and go and his eyes are the screens on which it can be seen. He turns to his racer and says with a mixed (nightcore and robotic) voice:

'My M873r181123r. (8=A, 7=T, 3=E, 2=Z, 1=I/L) I'm glad you could join us.' he smirks as he stands beside his racer too. Fox likes with an astonished face at Ché, standing there as response-less as ROB was in the Great Wolf. *An android!?*

'Wow. Surprise after surprise eh?' says the commentator as he continues like nothing ever happened. 'And at number three, we have... *reads the acquired bio* Terminator. Again, surprise. He's completely clean. Awkward... well. At least he reported himself. Where are you?'

Without the commentator's authorization, the sound of a fierce lightening strike is played as Terminator appears out of the dark, standing on top on one of the stadium lights. The sound plays again and he's gone. The crowd is getting confused but are soon entertained when he shows up, coming out of the garage like nothing happened before. On the stand, his racer is pulled up. It's circular in shape, looking like a LCAC and has a large, dis-functional blade around it. It has a white color finish while the blade edge are decorated with blood splatter. If it's real, no one knows.

At least the fourth introduction elapses smoothly. Big Daddy is introduced and as the happy fat guy he is, so he enters. His racer, the Big Bertha, is a ship shaped like a manta ray. Missing the tail and have a large energy core in the back, taking up 70% of the whole ship, it's the heaviest of all.

When Krystal (Sahara) is being introduced, someone storms in at the last second. It is Chase, gasping for breath as he is exhausted from all that running. Bent over and with his hands on his knees, he looks up to see Sahara's quasi-astonished face.

'Oh.' she says disappointed. 'Look who we have here. Mister Harass himself.' puns Sahara turning her head away from him.

'S-sahara. Hey *gasp*, w-where is Dyam? I need to see him. *swallow followed by a pant* I have important news for him.' claims Chase. But Sahara doesn't buy it, even though it is the truth.

'Hmmm... sure you have. *hears her queue* See ya!' she waves off as she walks towards the stage under a roaring crowd and a yelling commentator. Her Desert Storm is placed upon the fifth stand. Her bad girl attitude comes up again as she is fully engulfed in the racing spirit.

'Oh just great *pant*... I guess that believing a guy that pranked you isn't the best thing. *hears the bathroom door open behind him* Huh?' he notices as he says Mawile exit with a fanged smile as her tail slowly glides off Ryan's glowing face.

'I gotta go Ryan... do I see you later?' she asks flirty.

'Defiantly beautiful. Have a good race.' he says after her as she walks away. God knows for what, but Ryan seems to trust it. With a happy look on his face, he exhales and places his paws on the back of his head.

'Rough time?' comments Chase as he has retaken his breath. Ryan didn't notice him at all, but isn't happy to see him.

'Oh... hey. You've seen that?' he points after Mawile.

Chase nods. 'Yup. It seems you and Freakshow are getting together pretty good. *hears Ryan grate his teeth* Okay, okay. I'll stop. Listen, you know Dyam right?'

'Yeah. So?' says Ryan abrupt. He really wants to kick his ass again. He is squeezing his fist so tight, that it would explode within a second. His nails nearly puncture through his skin.

'I know we haven't seen eye to eye, but Dyam is in danger! I was hired to kill him!'

Wrong choice of words as this snaps Ryan's restrain. He charges at Chase, pushing him up against the wall. With a fierce knee to the stomach, his rage subsides as he lets go of Chase.

'*cough* I get it. You *spit* don't like me. But... I'm not here to finish the job.'

'Explain!' demands Ryan. '*grabs the radio from his belt* Otherwise, I'll call the "small time cops" and have your ass roasted in one of the Papetoonian Prisons!'

With a deep sigh, Chase starts to explain. Everything, from Starwolf hiring him to kill Dyam. Ryan is astonished to hear this. 'He also said that if I couldn't do it, that he'll find someone else.' adds Chase, remembering the phone call.

'Wait...' stops Ryan as he tries to figure out everything he has in his head. 'Did Wolf mention anything about a name?'

'Something with an 'R', that's all I know.'

'RYE!' shouts Ryan. 'Motherfuc... that I couldn't figure that out before.' he blames himself. He starts to pace around, tormenting his own brain. Until he starts to point at Chase, wiggling his finger. 'If you are shitting me... I will personally rip that talky tongue out and shove that right up your poopdeck! Understood!?'

'Understood.' he answer quickly. 'So, what now?'

'We'll find that out after the race. Can I trust you?'

'*reaches out his hand* Of course.'

Together they shake hands, staring down in each others eyes. Ryan's eyes are full of disbelief, which Chase can understand. With a last shake, their hands let go as Mawile comes around. Reminded that she is after Chase, she sees the once mortal enemies, suddenly have compromise.

'Any time for explanation?' asks Mawile curious.

'*hears his queue* Nope, sorry Mawile. Gotta run!' excuses Chase himself as he grabs his helmet, and puts it on. Mawile looks at Ryan, with an expression screaming: 'What the...?'

'Yep. He really said you name. *sighs as he looks after him* There might be hope for him anyway...'

A hurricane warning siren is heard as the lights in the Colosseum go out, as Rocking Like A Hurricane by the Scorpions is heard blaring. Lightning strike effects are seen on the stage, along with a projection displaying a hurricane at night with a red sky and palm trees being shaken by the winds, with rainstorm effects. Then water rains down from the stage, as Hurricane, makes his entrance.

'Ladies and gentlemen... the guy from Earth with a legendary record in racing. A jackass first class but one heck of a racer: Chase Harris aka HURRICAAAAANE!'

With his helmet already on, his car appears on the stand. It's a classic Chevy. The hood and roof are red, with Storm Surge written in black italic letters that appear to be being clobbered by hurricane force winds across the hood as the pillars of the car are black. The fenders are red and the number 68 displayed.  
All the usual Chevy logos are covered up by paint, but the grille is kept the same, the engine needs the air to cool it down. His driver's net is replaced by the windshield. Tear offs are replaced by a dark permanent hard plastic windshield, he can see out of the windshield, competitors can not. The front of the spoiler is black. With an exhaust looking like a stereotypical missile exhaust, with 4 small G-Diffusers surrounding it. But even with all this presence and ego, he still looks at Sahara with a concerned undertone.

'And we are now at number 7: she has gone by many names. Contraption, exile, Aparoid even! But the worst of all: inhumane... She is here... to make us swallow those words! Here she is, the beauty that is MAWIIIIILE!'

Coming up with her violin/crossbow hybrid, casually resting upon her right shoulder, a chair has been placed before her. Elegantly, she takes her seat and grabs her violin bow. Casualties of War, originally composed by Christopher Lennertz, is played by her hand. Chills run down everyone's spine, tears sprout of dozens of eyes as all hairs stand up at the atmospheric tones and deep emotion that made this piece in the first place.

'Oh wow. *swallow* I had no idea that G-Zero could become emotional.' says the commentator who nearly sheds a tear. Several people in the audience stand up, out of the greatest respect for those who gave their lives, saluting or remain seated and mourn in silence. Her racer, The Bow of the Violin, appears. Her violin/crossbow design is the basis while a bow, standing upright, runs right through the middle. She puts her violin back and stands beside her racer.

'Pfieuw... well. That was heavy on the down side. Let's see who is at number 8. *grabs the list* This one is again special in his own way. With the calmness and kindness unmatched by anyone, this guy has mystical powers. With his small smile, he can be scary and comforting at the same time. It is GYROOOO!'

But instead of Gyro coming out, everyone's attention goes out to the last empty stand. A stone head, similar to those on Easter Island appears and floats in mid-air. Small metal balls floats around the head, like electrons. One eye is the cockpit, and shows Gyro already in.

'Weirdo.' comments Chase by himself. Unknown to him, is that everyone heard that. *Who turned that on!?*

'There is Chase again... with his stupid comments!' bites Mawile over the internal comms. Also getting the full load from Sahara, Big Daddy and Ché, he swallows his words but marks this: 'There is a hurricane coming. You guys better not be on its track.'

Terminator starts to roar as other wave it off as another dumb comment for him. Backstage, Ryan gets a message on his radio.

*Radio*

_Op3, do you copy?_

_Go ahead HQ._

_We have found that guy they were missing at G-Zero. He's dead. I understand you are there already?_

_Yeah... I'am. _

_Don't do that too much son. It's time consuming and swallows your live in one go._

_Who are you to tell me that? Maybe that is my life. Oh nevermind! What is the urge?_

_Your team and numerous other are being deployed at the stadium. You have the authorization of your team only. Eye High is strictly off limits._

_What?_

_Am I clear?_

_But..._

_AM I CLEAR!? _

_*sigh* Yes HQ._

_Found out anything else? _

_Other than someone I hate resurrected out of nowhere... everything is going fine._

_Hang in there. HQ out._

*Radio*

Ryan shuts off the radio and puts it back on his belt. He places his paws against the underside of the garage door, which is isn't fully closed. On one end he feels kinda hopeless. Terminator, his old best friend, is out to kill him. Who knows who will be collateral? The whole situation is getting more complex by the minute. Clarity comes to his mind when he realizes he's not alone. Sahara, Fox, even Chase and especially Mawile are behind him.

'Everyone needs support. Even from one. That's enough already. Support is the most important thing in social status and wellbeing of any living creature. Krystal... did that with Fox. Dyam, wretched soul, had no one. I curse the day that he'll find his missing support. *looks up at the sky* Some bad weather is coming. *looks at Chase on stage* But even in that... there might by another shining star...'

Ain't that the truth? Well, that ends the chapter of the introduction. The race is coming...

It seems the slacking wasn't half as bad as I predicted. I've added some little things, but there isn't much change.  



	16. Race to destruction

With all racers know properly introduced and some of them with true identities, we are now ready to race the race of RACES!

**Chapter 16: Race to Destruction**

Automatic paint sprayers move over the racers, lined up for numbering. Looking like the devices found in car-washes, they paint the numbers 1 to 8 on the racers. Most of them on the front, even over Chase's '68' on the hood. The others are unaffected. As the machine disappears into the ground, all racers check their internal comms before jumping in their racers. With number 1, Fox is up front. Followed by Ché in his mysterious Materializer. It ends with Gyro. As they are preparing the last things inside, some get into conversations.

*Comms*

_Hey uh... Mawile?_

_*blunt* What Chase?_

_I-i must say... that song you played on the violin... it struck me. It really did._

_Why? You're not a causality of war. *I'am!*_

_But I did lose so much... on Earth. I got here by a freak wormhole. I was just racing, first place. Then it popped up all of a sudden. I didn't have time enough to react and I got sucked in. It teleported me to various locations. The last one, had a major delay. I 'spawned' in my own room... in my mother's eyes. When she heard me fall down in my room, she breached through the door. Along with every other family member... *turns his face away, trying to hold back the tears* Oh god! I can still see the look in their eyes, the expressions on their faces... I was glowing and already a piece of decaying matter. Small parts of eroded away and eventually, I was in Corneria City. _

_I didn't know that..._

_My brother... geh. I'll probably miss him most of all. He adored me... I was his hero. I began to hide myself, giving me a different character to bite off anyone who dared to stand in my way. _

_Will you just quit that whining!? Boohoo, you lost your family and you're never gonna see them again. Oh Boo fucking Hoo! Cry yourself to death... please. Save the world your pathetic misery..._

_*hoarse* Fuck you!_

_Termite! Stay out of it!_

_I ain't gonna take no orders from Ryan's chick!_

_*Hunh? Did I just hear what I thought I heard?* Wait what? Mawile? You and...?_

_Yes Big Daddy... it's on._

_He can stop being melodramatic now. _

_Right on Kr... I'm mean Sahara. _

_I thought I was having a conversation! Get the fuck off this channel Dyam!_

_I didn't know it was private..._

_You too Matrix rip-off!_

_*Terminator and Gyro (personal request) excluded*_

_You okay Chase? *Doesn't matter how rude he has been... no one deserves an enemy like Terminator.*_

_Yeah... ARGH! Annoying sack of shit! God..._

_Better hold in that anger for the race Hurricane. *laughs* Cause I'm gonna kick your ass for scaring the living shit out of me!_

_Thanks for the heads up._

_Hey, where is Gyro?_

_You got an awful lot of explaining to do you gauntlet-wearing son of a bitch! You an android or somethin!?_

_Most of me is. My parents moved to Katina, because new research on bionic revival had been completed. I died on Corneria. No knew, only my parents. I was resurrected as a living being, with 90% of me being robotic and computer controlled. _

_So... you had the gauntlet already?_

_Nope, it's true. My arm was cut off. Haha. That you guys seriously fell for the whole 'attached to my nerves' thing. Hilarious! That's impossible. You'll need demonic powers or magic for that. But that ain't real. _

*Comms*

The comms are temporarily closed as it is the commentator's turn. 'At long last, all racers are here and we have no further trouble. *behind him, two SWAT officers open the door and stand right behind him* Oh yeah. Forget to tell. Thanks to the missing Scarecrow, the PPPD will be patrolling around the stadium. Inside sources claim that multiple racers are targeted.'

Terminator hears this very well. *Ryan locked me in. Probably has a mark placed on my head already. This is gonna make things harder.* he grumbles in himself.

'But let's forget about that and concentrate on the race, shall we? *presses the button* Behold! The transformation from the 0-track to the Monster Madness!'

The track changes dramatically. Steep hills, far jumps, corkscrews... everything. Even a 100 degree, upward piece of track with the inclusion of three loopings. In the middle one, there is even a small corkscrews, making the racers gone upside down. After a razor-sharp left, the track continues onto the savanna plains towards the mountain ranges.

'Let me explain how it works' continues the commentator as a 3D simulation is displayed on-screen. 'Like usual, the track edge are covered with strings of electrified plasma... so watch out for those. When the countdown reaches zero, the race will begin. All racers starts with a nice straight piece of track to build up speed and get the hold of their racers. After a long turn to the left, the first jump will take place. Followed by a sharp right turn towards a steeper jump. Energy strips are being deployed and trust me you'll need it. Not for nothing that this one is called 'Drop Down'. Missing one, will lead you to crash your racer! Survival is almost impossible! When they pass that, we'll enter the 'Highrise area'! With that, I mean bumps of meters high. Looks simple, but watch out that you don't start flying! On some spots, who are hidden within the track, the gravity pull is lower. Meaning that you'll fly of track when you steered the wrong way. It ends with the 'Confuser'! I can't believe how many car carcasses we had to tug away from that one... heh heh. The race continues out of the stadium towards the 'Desert Freeway'. 'Canyon Crash' is next, where you gotta watch out for everything! And then, something new. Inspired by the ships from various armies, we introduce the Wing Gyro's. They attach to the wings or hull of any racer. This... is where real pilots are born... and rookies plummet! Taking the whole trip back, IN THE AIR, to the finish line where the next lap starts! Since this race is a lot bigger than the rest and we are short on time... we'll pick 3 laps. Racers... bring up your HUD's and you'll get your comms back.'

The HUD's appear in all racers, different colors but the same principe. Everyone except Gyro mutes Terminator and some take preference conversations. The countdown appears in front of the racers and also on the pole.

3. G-Diffusers activated, racers float.

2. Engine charges up.

1. Grip on the steering tightens...

0!

With a loud roar with different tones, the racers are gone. The Starwolf team, with Wolf holding an ice pack underneath the mechanical eye, is there too. The eye itself looks like a window that didn't shatter, instead having an enormous dent with thousands of cracks surrounding it. When the screen on the pole shows Terminator's racer, he growls in himself.

*I hope he dies... *screen focuses on Dyam* And I'm not done with you either!*

'Wolf.' notices Panther, sitting on his right. 'Take it easy. We are not laughing at you. Dyam surprised you. *shrug* So what? I could have happened to all of us.'

'Yeah well it happened to me!' he bites.

'Fine. Jeesh...' (...) Panther as he leans back in his chair. Wolf, realizing he might be too hard, apologizes.

'Let's just relax and enjoy have someone might crash!' proposes Leon.

And that is exactly what seems to be happening. The first jump has been completed by everyone. Up top, is Hurricane, Fox and Krystal.

*Comms (private)*

_Hey Fox. Want revenge on Hurricane?_

_*smirking* You got an idea?_

_I'm hungry...  
_

_Care for a sandwich?_

_As if you can read my mind. Let's do this!_

*Comms*

Fox dooms up from behind Hurricane as he drives on his left and Krystal on his right. The sharp right is coming up and Hurricane gives the G-Diffusers all the room they need to build up speed. He looks at Fox, with grating teeth and flips him off. Fox is seen shrugging before he looks behind him. His facial expression goes from 'I'm gonna ram him' to 'OH FUCK!' as he tilts his racer to the left.

'Out of my way!' exclaims Terminator as he presses a button. It activates the saw-blade around his racer as he storms forward. Hurricane, a quick thinker, steers his racer to his right and thereby trapping Krystal's Desert Storm, very close to the plasma boundary. The saw-blade slashes a large but shallow scratch in the left side of Hurricane's Storm Surge as he approaches the sharp right corner first. Hurricane is determinate to take out Krystal, so he pushes her closer to the edge. Fox sees this and when Hurricane looks over to Fox to see if he wants to ram him, he signals that he has to back down. When Hurricane gestures that he'll take him out for him, Fox signals that he wants to that himself. Hurricane shrugs, encloses his G-Diffusers and blasts away towards Terminator.

'I'll burn that insect down!' he says to himself.

*Comms*

_You okay Krys?_

_I'm fine Fox. Thanks for asking. _

_Bah... I had to pretend that I was Dyam. I feel disgusting._

_It's just pretending. _

_You're right. Let's finish this and catapult that Terminator to the last place!_

*Comms*

Terminator turns off the saw-blade to avoid detection by the camera's as he slides through the sharp corner with a blazing Hurricane behind him. Krystal's Desert Storm and Fox's Arwing III follows after him. They enter the Highrise area and starts with a deep fall downwards. As the racers go up and down, Ryan is still backstage. Listening over the tape-recorder, he tries to figure out more about Starwolf and Rye. He turns it off, giving up on it for a while and sits down on a chair in front of the TV. The camera is focused on the four racers left behind.

'Come on Mawile! You can do this!' cheers Ryan for his new girlfriend. And as if she heard it, she accelerates and even catches up with Fox's Arwing as the first bump comes. But the rest come closer too. The audience is going nuts when they enter the Confuser, the one going 100 degrees upwards with three loopings.

*Don't go puking right now!* thinks Fox to himself, giving Dyam a symbolic blow in the stomach.

'And they are entering the Confuser ladies and gentlemen! Hopefully there is going to be no casualties what so ever! And with that I obviously mean... *evil* CRASH!'

But all racers survive the test. After going down, they all exit the stadium. Those who were holding back on speed, defiantly loosen up all the brakes as they extend speeds breaking the sound barrier one by one. The calmness around them, the whipped up dust from the savanna of the Desert Freeway gives a beautiful scene. The mountains of the Canyon Crash area are coming closer as the ranking list reads:

_1: Terminator  
2: Hurricane  
3: Sahara  
4: Dyam  
5: Mawile  
6: Big Daddy  
7: Ché  
8: Gyro_

Looking at them coming closer from inside his Arwing, it kinda reminds him of the approaching mountains on Venom during the Lylat Wars. He tightens the grip on the control sticks, getting the same adrenaline rush and pleasure as he visualizes the whole thing over again. He looks to his left and sees the old Arwings of Peppy and Slippy appear. Slippy even greets him as he boldly goes forward, only to be called back by Peppy. Laughing, he looks to his right. Something odd but assuring happens: Krystal's Desert Storm doesn't turn into Falco's Arwing, but instead Falco appears above her and she herself is sitting behind the controls of a normal Arwing herself. She looks at him and gestures towards the mountains and the gap in between. Feeling Starfox coming up, his vision becomes blackened. With the dusky night-sky turning into the brown, thundering and poisonous atmosphere of Venom, he feels reborn.

'Let's rock and roll!' he shouts over the comm channel before making his move forward towards Hurricane and Terminator, followed closely by Krystal and Mawile. Inside the Canyon Crash, Terminator and Hurricane are having a neck-a-neck race. Random rock pillars are sticking out of the ground and the walls are enclosing fast. Terminator's round racer takes up most of everything, causing Hurricane to slow down to preserve the damage. The 'Starfox team' catch up with him as they encircle him. Fox and Mawile on the sides and Sahara behind them.

*Comms*

_Uuuh... what's the meaning of this?_

_Don't worry Hurricane. We're gonna help you._

_Really? *looks at Fox* Even after I put a head in your fridge... *looks at Mawile* calling you a Freakshow... *looks through the rear-window at Krystal* and laid out an entire jar of desert sand in your bed?_

_At least it was from Titania. *giggles*_

_Forgiven and forgotten Hurricane. Unlikely that I would say that, but I don't like that Terminator. I'm supposed to be the G-Zero superstar. Not that overblown Splinter Cell knock-off!_

_No one deserves treatment like the way he treated you. And by the way, I think he's threatening my Ryan. No way that's gonna happen!_

_Thanks guys. _

_Let me handle this. *snaps his fingers* I'm in the ZONE!_

*Comms*

Using the walls as half-pipes seen in skate parks, Fox evades every obstacle, like in the old times and speeds towards Terminator. He has to keep his fingers off the deactivated 'fire' button though. Making a barrel roll here and there, he feels complete again. Like Dyam never existed, he makes a full round in a tunnel formated out of a rock before using that momentum to increase his speed to once more break the sound barrier, but this time **inside** the Canyon Crash. The crowd is going wild as Fox has no trouble catching up with Terminator.

'You're mine Andross! Uuh.. I mean Terminator!' states Fox as he scales the left wall of the narrow road, driving next to Terminator right now. Out of the corner of his right eye, Terminator can see a camera-droid focusing on him. Grumbling, he decides to give Fox the slip; but Fox is faster and cuts him off as he takes the first place.

'Motherfucker!' screams Terminator, slamming on his fist on the control board as he sees Hurricane & Co appear behind him.

*Comms*

_Nice job Dyam!_

_Thanks Hurricane. Now finish him off will ya? Don't let my precious time be in vain. Heh heh._

_Will do! Mawile, Sahara... you ready?_

_Let's toast that cyborg!_

*Comms*

'FOR RYAN!' screams Mawile out of nowhere as the front side of her racer lifts up in the air and getting a serious speed boost as it ends up that way, breaking into the glass cupola covering Terminator's racer. It hooks on and Mawile hits the brakes, forcing the back-end of the racer into the ground. Acting as an anchor, both ships slow down dramatically with both racers having different reactions as Hurricane and Krystal pass them by. Terminator can see Hurricane raising his fist against him for just a split-second before his anger is complete when Mawile manages to free her racer and backs up a bit; she gives him an air kiss before going up into the dust cloud formed by Gyro, Big Daddy and Ché.

'Fucking whore!' He quickly turns to his controls again as the engine exhaust blows away any sand blocking his way out as he boots away. After the Wing Gryo part, all racers went over the finish. The list reads:

_1: Dyam  
2: Hurricane  
3: Sahara  
4: Ché  
5: Mawile  
6: Gyro  
7: Big Daddy  
8: Terminator  
_

Terminator has had enough. He set himself some strict rules: killing off Ryan is the first priority. Going towards the first jump, he remembers Mawile's reaction to him tackling Ryan.

*Hmmm... so they are... Really? *shrug* Alrighty then!* He puts on a demonic smile as he takes the first jump, focused on Mawile somewhere between Gyro's giant head and Big Daddy's manta ray. He presses the button, activating the saw-blade again even though the camera's are completely focused on him. Turning a switch next to that button, the saw-blade increases in speed, noise and length.

*Out of my way!* he says to himself as the racer is now in between Gyro and Big Daddy.

*Comms*

_Hey what do you think you're doing!?_

_Go down fatty!_

*Comms*

Before Big Daddy can react, the saw-blade cuts off the manta ray's left-wing, causing it to spin out of control as the first jump starts. Making not enough speed, Big Daddy's racer drops down towards the ground.

'Hell no! Escape pod!' he screams as he pushes the panic button, launching the cockpit off and sending him into the air with chair and all. A parachute opens up on the chair as Big Daddy softly lands on the ground while the Big Bertha explodes in a fiery ball of fire. 'Lucky me.' he exhales as he releases himself from his belts. He raises from the chair and swings his arms up in the air, signaling that he's okay.

'Wait... that's not what we wanted, right?' verifies the commentator, not able to find the correct words for this all. 'Yeah, we wanted a crash. But that's cheating! Let's look at the replay in slow-mo.'

The totem plays the scene over again and the crowd can clearly see that the saw-blade is activated and extended. The crowd starts to boo against Terminator as the commentator sends over two security drones. Coming in like planes, they collapse into metal balls with heads armed with two lasers on the sides.

'RACER KNOWN AS TERMINATOR! STOP YOUR RACER!' command the drones at the same time. Terminator doesn't take it in like the drones had in mind; one by one, they are cut in half as Terminator races towards Mawile. Ryan, sitting at the edge of chair, has his fingers crossed as the camera focuses on Terminator trying to end Mawile's Bow of the Violin while Mawile keeps evading it. He has enough of the commentator's neglect as his girlfriend is getting threatened with dead as the Drop Down nears. He grabs his radio and changes the frequency multiple times on random channels, completely knocking out the blockade set out by HQ.

*Radio*

_EYE HIGH! This is Op3. Come in!_

_Ryan? The fuck are doing? You know you can't contact me._

_I don't give a shit about HQ. Where are you? Mawile is in danger!_

_On the Colosseum roof. Hey, really? I knew you guys were gonna..._

_ARE YOU GONNA DO IT?!_

_What?_

_SNIPE HIM!_

_*deep sigh* Fine. You own me two Steller. Eye high out._

*Radio*

Aiming down into the scope, he lays down flat on the rooftop. He cocks the rifle, puts on a suppressor to avoid detection and flips the safety switch. He zooms in on Terminator's racer. 'Eat lead you cheating bastard!'

The first shot is fired from the sniper rifle ricochets off the hull, shaking it a little. But Terminator doesn't mind; in fact, he gets the feeling even more as closes in towards Mawile. He re-circles the bolt and aims again, this time a little more towards the G-Diffuser.

'Gotcha bitch!'

The sniper fires again and shoots of one of the G-Diffusers of the two engine exhausts it has causing Terminator to lose control when he tries to ram Mawile's left side, missing her completely. The blade's edges are vaporized the moment they come into the plasma-rails.

*Radio*

_Op? Do I need to kill him?_

_Whatever it demands._

*Radio*

But Eye High doesn't need to do it; Terminator doesn't make the speed limit required to jump over. He also misses every energy strip and plummets down towards the ground, screaming. His panic button fails as he gets engulfed in the flames of the explosion following. The rest of the race continues with exhales on both sides, within the racers and backstage. Ryan, nearly dying from a panic attack, changes the frequency again and starts up a conversation with Mawile.

'So... enough adrenaline for today huh?' remarks Fox as all racers decrease speed, coming closer to one another as the Desert Freeway starts up.

'That was one heck of a rush indeed.' comments Mawile, having Ryan on the other end. 'That assface nearly got me. How about you Big Daddy?'

Sitting on a stretcher being bandaged in by ambulance staff, he talks through an ear-piece. 'I'm fine Rox. I'm fine.'

'That was some intense shit! WOO!' shouts Ché coming out of nowhere. 'But eh... what about now?'

Ryan knows. 'Everyone need to report with me backstage. I'm taking full responsibility for everything. It's my fault and I'm getting all of you out of here. *gets another message on his radio* Oh just a sec guys.'

'Sure Ryan.' ends Mawile as she turns of the comms. 'Oh wow!' she glows as behind the mountains of Canyon Crash, the morning sun rises up.

'Such a beautiful sunrise...' says Krystal full of praise. She is not the only one. Also Fox and Hurricane can feel the warmth and beauty radiating from it. Krystal and Fox close in to each other, like crawling to each other. They wanted to do that, for a long time. No matter the environment; park, at a river or beach: Being close to each other, embracing one another while the sun rises in the background. Two minds become one as Krystal opens up her telepathy again. Fantasies collide and merge. Under the touching tones of Mawile's violin, the light from the sun is giving their faces a reddish-orange gleam as Fox places his right paw on Krystal's right cheek, bringing her face closer to his. The looks on their faces say more when nothing at all is said. All have no urge for winning anymore as they go over the finish. The crowd applauds out of the deepest respect when Hurricane comes in first, Krystal second and Fox third. But two people are disappointed with the results of this race: Rye and Ryan.

Suddenly, while Wolf is just enjoying the replay of Terminator's destruction, his phone rings. He silences Panther and Leon when he sees it's Rye calling.

*Phone*

_Hey Rye. What up?_

_Wolf, shut up and listen! This is a 50/50 situation. He finished 3th, meaning that I don't lose money but don't make it either. You got my full permission to do whatever it takes._

_Whatever?_

_Are you deaf? Of course! Knock him out!_

*Phone*

Slightly panicked and angered, he snaps the phone and throws it away against the wall. His desk is a complete mess. Documents are scattered everywhere and a pistol is hiding in all that mess. The black suitcase, originally from Chase, is opened and filled with some of those documents on the right side and a laptop with a broken but working screen with the stock exchanges and his bank account. A rigged bomb is set into the suitcase but the timer isn't running yet.

*Why am I panicked!?* he thinks to himself as he kicks against the desk-leg, opening up a drawer filled with even more. He moans out of despair and displeasure and closes it. 'Oh yeah. I remember. Terminator is dead and... *checks his bank account and exchanges. They are lowering* SON OF A BITCH! *slams his hand flat on the desk, whipping up a lot documents as he sits down in the chair* GET FUCKED UP! *deep sigh* Wolf better be worth of his money.' He facepalms himself before grabbing his hair and slamming his face onto the desk.

But why is Ryan disappointed?

*Radio*

_Ryan, do you copy?_

_What's up SECT 6?_

_We have swiped every part of the crash site; he is nowhere to be found._

_You kidding me?_

_I'm sorry Ryan. He's gone.  
_

*Radio*

Wolf, still sitting in the chair and rubbing his chin is thinking while he observes SECT 6 looking through the area.

*How do I take care of Dyam without bullshit coming at us? Wait... what does Dyam have now? Some weird things happened. He signaled to that failed mercenary-for-hire to get out so he can ram Sahara, but he didn't. And then he starts to come together at the end like lovers? That Sahara... is changing him.*

A sudden tap on his shoulder is a security guard dressed in a blue bulletproof-vest snaps him out of it.

'Excuse me sir. But we're closing. You need to leave.'

Wolf turns around to face him. 'Oh sure.' he admits friendly as he rises up. The guard looks at Wolf, as if he recognizes him.

'Heeey... you're Wolf O'Donell, right? Starwolf team?'

'Indeed I am.' states Wolf proud. *A fan? I think it's only fair after we annihilated the Anglars.* he thinks righteously ego as he's handed a pen and paper.

'And who needs to know?' he asks rhetorical.

'To Sam and Kevin. For me and my son.'

'*impressed* Wow. Two more eh? *signes the paper and hands it to him* Here you go!'

Very excited, the security guard guides Wolf out of the Colosseum. As Wolf exits the Colosseum, he realizes the pressure on him.

*With these amount of fans, I really can't be caught in the middle of this all. It seems like I'm gonna have to make him commit suicide or something. *idea* Why didn't I think of that in the first place!? Sahara! She supported Dyam throughout all this. And even with him resisting, she still managed to complete it. The nicer side had support, but the gloomy, ego side didn't. *smirks* Maybe... I should become that support...'

A late chapter, sure. Now, the race is over and the racers are getting out of here. But Terminator is still at large. And how about Wolf's plan? Next chapter...  


Guys, I can't thank you enough for 2630 views. It's incredible. I hope you spread it out to everyone you know. Just share, favorite and review. Just view it! I don't care! I love every contribute and couldn't stand another day without it. You guys are awesome. Phantomfoxx out!


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